Embers of the Past
by NaturallyDark
Summary: When Julia, a starting out Pokémon trainer, meets Flame, a feisty little Cyndaquil, her world is slowly but surely turned on its head. Strange dreams plague them both and their friendship develops too quickly. And Julia begins to wonder: have they met somewhere before? A twist on SoulSilver and Pokemon: Mystery Dungeon 2. Rated T for language and some violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, and thank you for reading Embers of the Past! I've seen people write about what happened in their game, practically word-for-word. Maybe they try to step up their game with a different evil team, or – Arceus forbid – their main character has powers! Wooooo, how unique!**

**I truly am not a big fan of those stories, unless they're written very well. So, I can guarantee you 100% that this is not one of those stories. You'll find out why not in chapter two. My plan is to upload a new chapter every Thursday, so stay tuned for updates! I always appreciate a review or critique, so feel free to leave one!**

**Edit: Updated the chapter with correct information.**

**Enjoy!**

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The night was still. The only thing that interrupted was the sound of footfalls on the damp grass and heavy breathing. She stumbled forward, fear crawling up her spine. _What am I doing here?_ she wondered, panting. A canopy of leaves on branches obscured the stars above from view. There should have been no light in the forest. Yet a dim, green orb of light pulsated somewhere ahead of her. What was it? Why was it glowing? Why did she feel her pulse quicken at the sight of it, and why did a sense of urgency grow within her as she neared it?

Her eyes snapped open and she awoke with a jolt. She sat up in bed, clutching at her forehead. By now, she was used to it, but her heart still pounded heavily in her chest.

Stretching her arms out in front of her, Julia swung her legs over the edge of the bed, slowly rising to her feet. She rifled through her clothes-drawers in search of something to wear, finally finding a blue three-quarter sleeves top and a pair of overall-shorts. She pulled her matching blue socks up to her knees, then, tying her hair into two short, low Pignite-tails, put on a white cycling hat with a blue ribbon.

This was it. She breathed in deeply, staring at her reflection in her mirror. A grin pulled at the corners of her mouth. Julia did look like a Pokémon Trainer.

Checking her bedside clock to make sure that she was still on time, she skipped down the stairs, the memory of her dream already fading. Professor Elm, the local Pokémon professor, had a starter Pokémon waiting for her and two other Trainers, and he had promised to hold them for them only until eight o'clock.

_I can't be delayed by even a minute! _she decided_. I'm going to prove that I'm the most worthy teen in the world to receive a Pokémon!_

Julia found that she was the only one awake so far, which she was relieved at. If her mother was awake, there would be so much fuss and happy tears that Julia wouldn't find an opportunity to leave until lunchtime! And if Jordan and his dumb Quagsire were awake... Arceus forbid that! The last thing Julia needed was for her pain-in-the-ass cousin and McMister the Quagsire to delay her with their nonsense!

Finding a loose scrap of paper, Julia quickly scrawled out a note to her mother and left it on the table. Then, with an air of excitement, she turned around and grabbed her bag out of the closet and her newly fixed PokéGear off the counter, put on her scuffed-up white shoes, and, without a glance back, ran out the door.

The breeze that constantly swirled around New Bark town lifted her orange hair as she ran down the street, headed for the professor's lab. The town was small enough for her to make it there in less than five minutes, even after she was forced to slow down and catch her breath. The lab loomed in front of her, a large building with two floors, the upper floor being the professor's living quarters. Julia took in a deep breath, then pushed open the double doors.

Inside, the air smelled clean, like a Pokémon Centre. The walls were white, and fancy machinery lined the walls, lights blinking and beeping noises echoing everywhere. Assistants dressed in white lab coats walked around with clipboards. It all felt very professional and strict. Had Julia not known the professor personally, she didn't doubt that she would have been incredibly intimidated. Luckily, professor Elm had been a family friend even before she was born, and 'intimidating' was the last adjective that could be pinned on him.

The scrawny young man stood at the back of the room, bent low over a laptop, furiously typing away as Julia approached him. He mumbled to himself, but when she brightly announced, "'Morning, professor! I'm here for my Pokémon!" he turned around instantly, an embarrassed expression on his face.

"Well, good morning, Julia! You're here early!" he exclaimed. "I was just finishing writing an email to my good friend, professor Oak! He said he was in town, so I just thought I'd send him a greeting! But I suppose you want your Pokémon?"

Julia nodded excitedly at him. With a knowing smile, Elm walked over to a large, white machine and pressed a button on it. The lid rose up and away to reveal three PokéBalls. Elm lifted them out and began releasing the Pokémon within them in order.

"First of all, we have the grass type Pokémon, Chikorita." A Chikorita emerged from the red beam and squeaked up at Julia, his green eyes widening.

"Next is the fire type Pokémon, Cyndaquil." The small Cyndaquil trembled and whimpered, trying to put distance between herself and Julia.

"And finally, the water type Pokémon, Totodile!" The Totodile flexed his non-existent muscles and beamed.

Elm waved his arm and stepped back towards his computer. "Go on ahead, Julia. Take your time choosing the one that you'll get along with best. After all, you'll spend a good deal of time with it on your journey."

Julia crouched down and smiled at the three. "Hi! My name's Julia!" she introduced. "I hope that I can become really great friends with one of you!"

Chikorita bounced forward, his eyes shining. "My name's Chikorita! Can I please be your friend?" he begged in an excited squeak.

"No, wait, pick me!" insisted Totodile, barging forward and shoving Chikorita aside. "I'll be a stronger partner! I'll definitely keep you safe!"

"Hey!" protested Chikorita, and a heated slap-fight ensued.

"Cut it out, both of you!" Julia tried to pull them apart, but they were too deeply enthralled in their little battle. In fact, they seemed to enjoy it and began using actual attacks on each other. Julia giggled at them, then glanced over at Cyndaquil. She seemed very quiet and she huddled a good distance away from the other two. When Julia finally managed to make eye contact with her, the Cyndaquil held her gaze for only a moment before turning her head away and closing her eyes. Julia sighed, then looked back over at Chikorita and Totodile, who had finished their battle and were now laughing together. She stood up, putting a hand on her hip, and the two Pokémon swiftly straightened and looked up at her with the most adoring eyes they could muster.

"Alright!" Julia declared. "I've chosen my Pokémon!" She knelt and peered into Chikorita's eyes. "I choose you, Chikorita, as my partner!" With a happy cry, the Pokémon leapt into Julia's arms and she stood again. Totodile looked downcast, but gave Chikorita a thumbs-up with a wink.

Elm walked back over from his laptop, looking satisfied with himself and with Julia.

"So, you've chosen Chikorita? The journey may be tough at first, but I am certain that, with enough perseverance, you two will form a close bond!" He handed Julia the PokéBall that would contain Chikorita and smiled. "Best of luck, Julia!"

Julia clutched the PokéBall tightly and set down her new Pokémon to follow behind her as she walked out the doors and into her journey.

She never would have been able to guess just what awaited her.

"I'd like to order a kid's size pancake breakfast and a chocolate milkshake. Oh, and two straws, please!"

Julia sat in a window booth at Miltank's, New Bark's famous ice cream parlour and diner, Chikorita sitting opposite her. It seemed that his wide smile never faded from his face.

The waitress took down the notes then scurried off in the opposite direction. The diner was relatively empty this morning, meaning that Julia could chat with Chikorita as loudly as she wanted. And because any Pokémon's way of communication was usually limited to body language anyways, half of their dialogue would be lost to anyone listening in.

Chikorita's Nature, as it turned out, was Cheerful, and he was good at attacking. He really liked Cheri berries and Watmel berries, and he was afraid of ghost-types. At that point, Julia's order had arrived - the plate of pancakes, which was exceptionally large for a kid's size, was stacked five high and drizzled with chocolate and caramel syrup and topped with whipped cream. If Julia's mother saw that, she'd surely have a heart attack!

Even though both of them were voracious eaters, they both only managed to get through half of the plate of pancakes. After the waitress took it away, they kept chatting, sipping from the milkshake occasionally.

Abruptly, Chikorita stopped talking and stared out the window, his eyes narrowed. Julia looked out and spotted what he was looking at. A boy with crimson red hair slouched by, exuding an icy aura. He gripped a PokéBall in his hand.

"That guy gives me a funny feeling," growled Chikorita. "It looks like he's up to something."

At that moment, Julia's PokéGear rang. She unclipped it from her bag strap and checked the caller ID. It was professor Elm. _Oh, no, _Julia groaned inwardly. _Did mom give him my number?_

Nevertheless, she picked up, but hardly was able to get in a 'hello' before Elm broke into hysterics.

"Oh, it's horrible! Some kid just broke into the lab and stole both of the other starter Pokémon! Get over here at once!"

"Hold on, professor!" Julia blurted. "That kid - did he have red hair?" It was a crazy thought, but what if...?

"Yes! Why do you ask? Do you see him?!" The professor then began crying out random jargon, so Julia quickly hung up and tossed the PokéGear in her bag.

"C'mon, Chikorita," she told him, getting up from her seat. "I've got a hunch about that guy!"

Ignoring the waiter who yelled at her to pay for her meal, Julia and Chikorita dashed out the doors and ran up to the red-haired kid.

"Hey, you!" Julia called out. The boy turned, glowering. "Did you steal the Pokémon from professor Elm's lab?"

He raised his eyebrows at her. "That's a rude assumption to make of someone, kid. How old are you? Nine? Eight?"

"I'm thirteen," Julia insisted, "and if you didn't take those Pokémon, then why don't we have a battle? Because you must otherwise have your own Pokémon, right?" She gestured to the PokéBall in his hand.

"You got me there. Not bad, for a little kid." He smirked, and added, "I accept your challenge!" He tossed the PokéBall, and from it emerged the Cyndaquil, who looked more terrified than ever.

"Okay, Chikorita," Julia told him, "this is our first battle. Let's take this guy out!"

Chikorita leapt in front of Julia, a determined expression replacing his usual cheerful one.

"Destroy these losers," growled the boy. Cyndaquil, still looking afraid, charged forwards with surprising speed and slashed Chikorita with her claws before Julia could even issue a command. Chikorita fell back, hurt but still able to battle.

"Use Pound!" Julia ordered, and her Pokémon rushed at Cyndaquil. However, before he could attack, Cyndaquil ran slightly past him, striking his side and taking him to the ground. He had fainted.

"No!" cried Julia, rushing towards her Pokémon and cradling him in her arms. The boy snarled and returned Cyndaquil to her PokéBall.

"What losers," he muttered, and turned to leave. Narrowing her eyes, Julia returned Chikorita to his Ball as well, then grabbed the boy's arm.

"You think I'm just gonna let you run away with those stolen Pokémon?" He jerked his arm free, knocking Julia back onto the ground. She groaned, then looked around the street for help - however, it seemed that, being that it was still very early in the morning, nobody was up yet. The street was deserted, save for a few cars.

"This Cyndaquil may prove useful later," the boy grinned, then turned and walked away.

"Hey!" protested Julia again, trying to follow him, but she was suddenly stopped by the waiter from Miltank's, who had run out to stop her.

"You didn't pay for your meal!" he yelled at her.

"But - that guy stole some Pokémon!" Julia tried to tell him, but was interrupted.

"Of course he did. C'mon - pay up, kiddo!"

Unable to protest further, Julia had to finally go back in and pay for her meal. Elm called her a short while later, and Julia was forced to tell him how she failed to stop him. The professor assured her that she didn't do anything wrong, but she still felt ashamed. She lost her chance not only to save those two Pokémon, but also to show Elm that she had what it took to be a good Trainer.

As Julia walked away with a heavy heart, she let Chikorita out of his PokéBall, who insisted he felt okay and that she would totally beat that guy when they next met. Though she continued to mope for a while, the sun shone above head and she reminded herself that it was indeed the first day of her journey across Johto to win all the Pokémon Gym badges and, hopefully, become a master of Pokémon. Gradually, her spirits rose, until she was finally running towards Route 29, Chikorita jogging along at her heels. They dashed into the tall grass, defeating wild Pokémon and exploring in bushes. There was no feeling of urgency at all. The world was their playground.

However, the day continued and they finally became hungry enough to try making progress towards Cherrygrove town, the nearest town on their way. The heat of a late summer afternoon had the two drenched in sweat, but they were both completely elated.

Once they reached the town, Julia brought Chikorita to the Pokémon Centre to heal him from any scratches given to him by wild Pokémon, then to another restaurant in town. Since Trainers usually travelled the region and were either too lazy or unable to make their own meals, cheap diners were built left, right, and centre for kids to eat at with their Pokémon.

They proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon in Cherrygrove town. Julia did not often come here with her mom, and when she did, it was usually for a special occasion, so she felt excited to be there. Chikorita seemed to absorb her energy and mimic it, for he was equally enthralled and excited and he dashed around with her.

It became too late to leave for the next city, so when the sky darkened, they returned to the Pokémon Centre, which provided sleeping quarters for travellers. Julia slept with Chikorita next to her on the pillow, and instead of cryptic lights, her dreams were filled with visions of her and Chikorita battling Trainers and legendary Pokémon. She never gave a second thought to that boy or the stolen Pokémon.

Not until they met again.

"Well, Chiki, it seems that you're pretty close to evolving!"

Julia crouched by her Chikorita, whom she had begun calling 'Chiki' for the sake of it being easier to pronounce than his full species' name and, of course, more endearing. They were training out on Route 32, past Violet city. It felt hard to believe that she had only been a Trainer for a week - the way that she issued commands was natural to her and their standard routine of waking up and having breakfast, training, breaking for lunch, training some more, then finally having dinner and casually hanging out the rest of the evening.

They had been in Violet city for longer than most young Trainers and their Pokémon. The Gym Leader, Falkner, and his flying-type Pokémon had proven to be too difficult to defeat yet, and even though Julia told Chiki she could catch a Sentret or another Pokémon who wasn't weak to flying, he refused and only wanted to train harder. He had insisted that he wanted to be the one to defeat Falkner, even if grass was weak to flying, and with his large, adoring eyes, how could she refuse him?

"Yeah, I think I can feel it!" Chiki agreed, grinning. "I'll evolve into a Bayleef and become even more powerful! Then I can put Falkner and his birds in their place!"

Standing up, Julia put on her game face. "Then let's destroy the Trainers around here and - "

"Destroy the Trainers?" a snarky voice interrupted. "More like, make them piss themselves laughing at your idiocy!"

Julia and Chiki turned to face the newcomer, who casually walked towards them, tossing a PokéBall in the air languidly.

"Looks like we meet again, kid," he grinned. "So you didn't run home crying to your mommy. You get points for that, at least." The boy held out his PokéBall and challenged, "Now, let's see if you learned from our previous encounter. I challenge you to a battle - one on one; your Chikorita versus my Cyndaquil."

Julia clenched her fist. She knew that it was foolish, but she couldn't back down from a challenge from this guy.

"You're on!" she replied, then called out, "Go, Chiki!" Chiki, looking doubtful, nevertheless stalked forwards, growling menaces at the boy. He raised his eyebrows mockingly.

"Chiki? Aw, what a cute nickname. Well, two can play at that game." He threw the PokéBall, then said in the most offensive tone he seemed to be capable of, "Go, _Flame_!"

The Cyndaquil emerged from the PokéBall, and the moment Julia laid her eyes upon her, guilt surged through her like a Waterfall attack. The small Pokémon no longer looked nervous - in fact, she no longer looked, well, anything. Her eyes were dull, and she stumbled forward wearily, nearly falling over. Scratches and wounds, some still fresh, covered what little there was of her body.

Julia stepped forward in horror, and Chiki stood motionless, shocked.

"Wha - what did you do to her?!" she shrieked.

"I tried to train her," explained the boy drolly, "and she couldn't take even a little bit of pain, it seems. As if it really matters. She can still burn 'Chiki's' ass."

Julia's voice became low and furious as she asked, "Did you do this to Totodile, too?"

"Totodile was stronger, tougher. He didn't let himself get hurt, not like Cyndaquil."

Cyndaquil tottered towards her opponent, her eyes narrowing as she began to focus. Julia shook her head and yelled, "Chiki! Please, just knock her out! Use any attacks that aren't grass type!"

Chiki needed no further encouragement and pelted forwards, slamming into Cyndaquil with all his might. Flames suddenly erupted below him, the force of the attack sending him hurtling into a nearby bush. Julia wanted to cry out, but Chiki leapt from the bush in an instant, not yet ready to give up. Cyndaquil tensed, her entire back covered in blazes. Chiki approached slowly, as if trying to figure out how to attack her.

Her Trainer looked annoyed and finally barked, "Cyndaquil, use Flame Wheel!" Cyndaquil cringed when he spoke, her eyes widening in apparent fear and the flames on her back spurting higher momentarily, then rolled forward, encircling her body in fire. Chiki dodged, then retaliated with a well-timed Pound. She was knocked off her course, but rolled around and aimed in his general direction, disoriented by fear and fatigue. And when Chiki struck with another Pound, one of his only non-weak attacks he knew against fire, Julia suddenly felt like she was the one disoriented. Seeing Cyndaquil in her weakened state and constantly getting hit with attacks made Julia want to cheer her on.

_No, _Julia gritted her teeth while thinking,_ you need to cheer on Chiki. He's your Pokémon, and that Cyndaquil needs to be knocked out or she might badly hurt herself!_

"Hang in there, Chiki!" she finally called out. She needed to release her tension. Her fingernails dug into her palms so deeply that she felt a throbbing pain in her hands.

Cyndaquil plopped onto the ground at last, unable to work up the energy to roll at Chiki anymore. Her flames dwindled and her eyes closed. Chiki saw his opportunity and leapt up above her, smashing down with a critical Pound.

A squeak escaped Cyndaquil's mouth before she stopped moving.

Julia was mesmerized, relief washing over her. Cyndaquil was knocked out. The boy clacked his tongue in blatant disapproval.

"Weak." He took her back into her PokéBall and shook his head. "But she'll learn to be strong and stand on her own. Like I did."

"Return, Chiki," Julia sighed, returning Chiki to his PokéBall, "and take a good, long rest." Then, seeing that the boy had started to walk away, she yelled after him, "You think that's what Pokémon battling is about? Who's stronger?" He glanced back with mild interest.

"Well, you're wrong! It's about loving your Pokémon! The bond between the two of you! And having your Pokémon just get beat up - you call that training? That's just the cruelest thing you could do to anyone!"

On that last sentence, the boy's expression went from slight boredom to seething with hatred. He threw Cyndaquil's PokéBall at Julia, which smacked her in the head, then, before she could even register what was happening, he closed the distance between them and shoved Julia onto the ground, making her drop Chiki's PokéBall. He knelt down and, grabbing the front of her shirt, pulled her forwards so that he could leer straight into her eyes.

"Fuck you," he snarled. "You don't have a fucking clue what I've been through. Paying attention to someone isn't cruel; being ignored, never talked to, never paid attention to, never being cared for - that's cruel." He shoved her away in disgust and picked up his PokéBall. "You have no fucking clue!"

He rifled through his pants pocket until he found another PokéBall, a Great Ball, and let out a Fearow. He climbed onto its back, growled a command at it, then flew it away. Julia watched, stunned speechless, until they were a tiny black speck against the darkening orange sky. Eventually, she slowly stood up, aware of a pulsating pain radiating up her spine from her tailbone, and picked up the PokéBall. Never, in her tiny, irrelevant little life, had anyone ever sworn at her. Well, her mom had once, but that was a small, accidental curse when Julia had dropped a plate. In her peaceful town that she seldom saw outside of, everyone knew each other. Everyone was kind to each other and very respectful.

But this boy... What kind of hatred had he felt to feel it was acceptable to abuse his own Pokémon? Julia hoped to never see him again.

She glanced at her PokéBall, sighing. Chiki had been hurt early in the battle; she'd better go heal him.

Violet city gleamed in the evening with vivid shades of purple as Julia walked over to the Pokémon Centre. While she did have Potions that she could use, she only wanted to use them when they were travelling a Route, where they didn't have the convenience of a Centre nearby.

The nurse, as usual, took Julia's Pokémon from her, set the PokéBall on her machine for a few seconds, and repeated her odd phrase of, "We hope to see you again soon!" That disturbed Julia a little bit. The nurse wanted to see her back to heal her Pokémon from injuries? Did she want Julia's Pokémon to get hurt?

She had walked all the way out onto Route 32 when she remembered Chiki. She pulled out the PokéBall and tossed it, a small smile coming to her face as the red beam emitted from the ball and shaped into a Pokémon. She always loved seeing Chiki's broad, infallible grin.

But that smile never appeared. The Pokémon that cowered in front of her was not Chiki. It was Cyndaquil.

For a moment, her mouth hung open and she was unable to speak. Her mind raced. _What is Cyndaquil doing here? What happened to Chiki?!_ Then it hit her. When that boy threw his PokéBall at Julia and shoved her, she had dropped hers, and so, when he had gone to grab his PokéBall, he must have taken Chiki's instead of Cyndaquil's, leaving Julia with...

Her silence was broken by Cyndaquil, who looked up and whispered in a scratchy squeak, "I'm sorry." Julia stared at her.

"What? What do you mean?"

Cyndaquil took a small, hurried step away. "I'm sorry. I'm not strong enough to be useful to anyone." She began to tremble, her tiny paws clenched into fists. "I'll never be good enough to serve you!"

Had Cyndaquil used Confusion? Julia felt completely thrown off and managed only to make a "Huh?" noise at her.

"That's what happened, right? He traded me for Chiki because he's stronger, right?"

Julia hurriedly put the pieces together in her mind and, finally realizing what Cyndaquil thought had happened, said, "N-no! That's not it! After the battle, we dropped our PokéBalls and you and Chiki accidentally got switched. That's all!"

"So, then..." Cyndaquil lowered her head. "You're just going to go get Chiki back. Sorry. I didn't really think... Nobody like you would really trade their best friend for just another weakling!" All of a sudden, she broke down in tears, shaking. Once again, words could not even catch in Julia's throat for her to choke on. She had no idea what to say, but she slowly came down to her knees and put her arms around Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil squeaked in protest and tried to wiggle free, but Julia just pulled her in closer. The Pokémon was traumatized by that boy. How did he manage to break her spirits enough to make her honestly believe she was weak?

"I'm not going to let that boy take you back," Julia found herself promising. "I'm going to save Chiki, too, but I'll protect you."

Cyndaquil pulled away enough long enough to respond, "Why? I'm not worth protecting." The answer put itself into Julia's mouth.

"Because we're friends."

Cyndaquil stared and repeated slowly, "Friends? The two of us?"

How could Julia have said that? She had only just met Cyndaquil, let alone made friends with her. So why did she feel an odd sense of familiarity, like she did know her?

"Yeah, we'll be friends, okay, Cyndaquil?" Julia smiled at her. She couldn't go back on her words now, and Arceus knew she wanted to be friends with Cyndaquil and protect her from that boy, whatever his name was.

Cyndaquil nodded slowly, then dropped back onto the ground from Julia's hug. She fidgeted, not knowing what to do next.

"My name is Julia," Julia introduced, extending a hand.

Cyndaquil swallowed, as if bracing herself, then replied, "My name is...is Flame. Nice to meet you, Julia." She took Julia's hand and shook it meekly, as if she felt belittled by its size.

"Flame, huh?" Julia translated and a vague memory of the boy using that name when he called her into battle returned. Odd. Nicknames were usually given as a sort of endearment, and if the Trainer was not fond of their Pokémon, an offensive nickname would be more common, like the ever-hilarious 'Butthead.' But Flame was a nice name. Maybe the boy actually did like her and he just thought that insults were complimentary?

"So, then, are you hungry, Flame?" Julia asked, standing up. At Flame's cautious nod, she waved her arm in a beckon and told her, "Follow me. I know a really great place to eat in town!"

Julia kept a slow pace for Flame to follow her at, checking back over her shoulder every once in a while to make sure that she didn't fall behind. They didn't talk much, and the neutral mood slipped into an awkward one. In all honesty, Julia didn't know what to think about Flame. Did she really like her, or was she only being nice because she stupidly said that they were friends? As rude as she thought that was, she realized, to her dismay, that that was the most likely case. Julia, if given the choice, would trade Flame back for Chiki and his happy attitude. Chiki, who always believed in himself and thought that Julia was the best friend anyone could ever have. Flame seemed quiet and repressed.

They came to the diner, named, "The Hungry Clauncher." It was busy, but not so busy that the two had to wait for seats. Granted, they did have to sit near the corner with all the televisions for sports-hungry men, but the food there was so good that really, Julia didn't care. Flame sat on the table, being a good deal smaller than Chiki was - small for her species, even. She was quiet as Julia read out some of the menu items, just nodding or shaking her head from time to time. Finally, Julia just ordered the pasta with Combusken nuggets. It was what she wanted and Flame didn't seem to care either way.

After another few minutes of silence, Julia decided to make some conversation.

"So, Flame, have you ever eaten here before?"

"Erm, no," she replied, looking away slightly. "Actually, I've never eaten human food, either. Just those little Pokémon kibbles. They don't taste very good, though. How does human food taste?"

"You'll find out soon enough." Julia winked. "What do you like to do?"

"Well..." Flame looked up, pondering. "Battle, I guess. That's all I get to do ever."

Julia frowned. Of course. Considering the nature of her Trainer, Julia supposed that Flame hadn't been given much leisure time. That was a foolish question to ask.

"But if you mean before, too," Flame unexpectedly continued, "then I like exploring."

That surprised Julia. "Exploring?"

Flame's eyes shone. "Yeah, exploring! When we were all friends - Totodile, Chikorita, and I - we'd get to go outside and run around these mazes in the forest. At the end of the maze was a treasure." Her eyes glinted. "I was always the fastest to finding the treasure, and Totodile didn't like that, so then every time we got to play, I had to avoid him or he'd mow me down with Water Gun. I had to always be faster than him and if I saw him, I'd headbutt him really quickly to shock him and then run away!" She sat back on her haunches, beaming. "It was everyone for themselves!" She looked up at Julia and added, "What about you? Do you like exploring?"

Julia, startled by Flame's sudden talkativeness, thought about it and replied, "A bit, I guess. On every Route, I look everywhere for dropped items and rare Pokémon. I guess you could call that exploring. But if I were a wild Pokémon..." She grinned. "Then I'd probably have more time to do that. I don't have a lot of patience for looking for treasure. I wouldn't give up, but I just don't ever have enough time to even start a project like that." Cocking her head sheepishly, Julia sighed, "That's why it sucks to be a human. So, what - "

"What Pokémon would you be?" Flame interrupted, her eyes gleaming, before realizing that she had cut Julia off. "Sorry, I got a little too excited," she apologized, "but it's just that you're easy to talk to. Noah only ever let me out of my PokéBall to battle."

"Your Trainer's name was Noah?" Julia asked, frowning. Finally, she knew that guy's name. Somehow, that made her like him even less.

"Something like that, yeah," Flame nodded, seeming to recede a little. She was quiet again until Julia finally replied, "Well, if I were a Pokémon, I'd be...well, not a ground or water type, that's for certain." Jordan's Quagsire had effectively caused her to hate those two types.

"Maybe I'd be...a Floette! Y'know, 'cause I'm so cute and unique!"

"The evolution of those little Flabébé things, right?" Flame frowned thoughtfully. "But...I think you remind me more of a Pikachu." Julia almost laughed, but Flame looked so serious. "You're pretty hasty, and you really like to talk..."

"You're the one that likes to talk, Flame!" Julia remarked. "Look, our food's here!"

The waiter set down the plate of pasta, which was sprinkled with cheese and some fancy-looking herbs. Flame sniffed it curiously, then grabbed a noodle, nibbling on it briefly before slurping it up. She directed her bright red eyes at Julia and grinned.

"This is really tasty! What's it called?"

"This is pasta," Julia explained, "and to eat it, you roll some strands up on a fork like this, see?" She demonstrated rolling up the noodles and took a bite. Flame watched, then shrugged.

"I like it this way better!" she insisted, then sucked up another noodle. Giggling at her, Julia proceeded to explain the meat, praying that Cyndaquils were supposed to eat meat. Luckily, it seemed that that was the case, as Flame devoured most of it immediately, leaving only a few small chunks for Julia. After finishing their meal, their chat was revived.

"Hey, Flame, could you tell me what your Tr- I mean, Noah, was like?"

Flame closed her eyes and sighed. "Well, he was really strict. He wasn't really mean or anything; he just really wanted us to be strong. When he trained us, he would find three or four weaker Pokémon, and have us battle them. Totodile was really good at that..." She frowned. "...but I was only ever able to fight Pokémon one at a time. So while I attacked one, the other three attacked me at once." Her eyes now stayed closed as she continued meekly. "If I could knock them each out right away, maybe it could have worked, but it took lots of hits to knock even one of them out, and sometimes I got Paralyzed from Mareeps. I wish I could be stronger."

"Hey, don't say that!" Julia insisted. "You are strong! A week ago, you totally beat Chiki! And even though you were really tired and hurt today, you still managed to keep fighting!"

Flame opened her eyes and shook her head. "You make me sound like I'm a hero or something. I wasn't tired or hurt - the scratches couldn't all be healed because Noah only used Potions instead of going to a Pokémon Centre, and I just didn't want to battle again. I was trying my hardest, but even then, I couldn't beat a grass-type that was weaker than me." She lowered her head and whispered, "I'm a total failure."

"No, you're not! You did your best, and that's all that counts!" Julia stood up in her seat and grinned down at Flame. "We'll train together and you'll become the strongest ever! I promise, Flame."

"Really?" asked the Cyndaquil. "Th...thank you, Julia!" She leapt up to her feet. "I promise, too! I promise that I'll do my best!"

Julia counted out the money needed to pay for their meal and set it on top of the bill. "It's settled, then. We'll be strong together!" It was a really cheesy thing to say, but Julia felt energy surging through her and a certain excitement. While Flame had seemed timid at first, maybe it was just that she had to warm up to a person first.

They left the diner together, Flame following closely behind, and headed over to the Pokémon Centre. Julia returned to the room she had been staying at and the moment she closed the door behind them, she undressed, much to Flame's shock ("Wha - ?! You're taking off your clothes, right in front of me?!"), and got into her pyjamas.

"You can come sleep with me, if you'd like, Flame," Julia told her. Flame, still very red-faced from that experience, just nodded and hopped up next to Julia. She burrowed under the covers before sticking just her head out, mimicking Julia, who quietly giggled at her.

Julia began to fall asleep, but something odd suddenly hit her. That strange feeling before...when she had told Flame that they were friends... Now that feeling came back to her, and she just couldn't shake it off. Being here, next to Flame like this, struck a chord somewhere within her mind. Chiki had never given her this feeling.

She glanced over at Flame, who was already fast asleep. Had they...met somewhere before? That couldn't be. Julia had no memory of ever having seen Flame before, and Flame would have spoken up if she had recognized Julia, right?

Trying to clear her head of these thoughts, another idea intruded in Julia's mind. Was she Flame's Trainer now, or would she still give her back to Noah for Chiki? That was too hard to think about right now. Julia squeezed her eyes shut tightly, then relaxed them. She let her mind wander as she finally nodded off.


	2. Chapter 2

A storm raged, wind howling furiously and lightning crashing. The sea was whipped into tall, powerful waves, foam frothing at each cap.

"Hold on!" a voice yelled. "We're almost there!"

Thunder boomed as another voice cried, "I can't! I'm slipping!"

"Just a little bit longer! You can do it!" A bolt of energy crashed and there was a scream.

"Aaaiiiii!" Then there was silence, save for the roars of the turbulent storm.

The Pokémon looked up at the tent shaped like a Wigglytuff and the torches blazing against the evening sky. His fists clenched. _I can do this!_ he encouraged himself, then stepped forward onto the grate.

"Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected!" a voice from below called out. "Whose footprint? Whose footprint?"

"Gah!" yelped the Pokémon, and rushed back, shaking. A moment later, he sighed. "Guess I couldn't bring myself to do it, after all," he murmured, relieved and yet crestfallen. He turned away and plodded back in the direction he had come.

He made his way to the beach, and stared out at the reddened waves. Groups of Krabby had begun to crawl up onto jutting rocks, positioning themselves towards the open sea. Then, one by one, they began to blow bubbles from their mouths. The bubbles danced along the sky, some catching the sun's rays and glistening like crystals. Soon, the air was filled with bubbles. The Pokémon sighed, the sight of the bubbles soothing him. Every evening, the Krabby came out to blow bubbles, creating a beautiful and tranquil scene.

He continued walking along the shoreline, then noticed something out of the ordinary. A shape lay on the beach, unmoving. He gasped and hurried over. It was a Pikachu, laying completely knocked out.

"Hey! Are you okay?!" he exclaimed, shaking the Pokémon's shoulders. "Wake up!" Slowly, the Pikachu's eyes opened, and she looked blearily up at him.

"Where...am I?" she asked weakly, struggling to sit up. The Pokémon helped her, pulling her up to her feet. As her vision focussed, she tried to make out his outline. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"You're just outside of Treasure Town," the Pokémon told her. "What happened? You were totally zonked out." He frowned and added, "I haven't seen a Pikachu in a while. Are you new here?"

She leapt in shock and asked, "A-a Pikachu? I'm not a Pikachu, I'm a human!" She then noticed her own forked yellow tail and yellow paws. "Or, at least, was a human..."

"A human, huh?" The Pokémon frowned. "I've heard of those, but aren't they just legends? You might have hit your head. Are you sure you were a human?"

"Yes, I'm positive," the Pikachu insisted, but she paused. "That's all I remember, though..."

"Do you remember your name, at least?" the other Pokémon asked. Thinking hard, the Pikachu nodded.

"Yeah...my name...my name is Julia." The other Pokémon came into focus as a Cyndaquil and he smiled.

"My name is Flame. Nice to meet you, Julia!"


	3. Chapter 3

**It'll make sense soon, I swear! ^_^; Alright, I had to upload this one early due to the second chapter making no sense on its own. No, Julia didn't turn into a Pokémon. Well, not here - er, now - er, or rather...**

**I swear on my life, it'll make sense! TT^TT**

* * *

When Julia's dreams stopped, she thought that was the end of them. Tonight, however, they returned with a vengeance.

She wandered through a dark cave with red walls, and blistering heat surrounded her on all sides. Her face, back, chest, and underarms were drenched with sweat as she tried to make her way around. All she knew was that whatever she had been searching for in the forest, she had to find now. It was too difficult for her baked mind to think about anything else.

_Whatever it is I'm looking for...I have to find!_ she thought, her heart pounding in her chest. An odd sense of urgency came over her and threatened to drown her. She began to stumble; the heat was too much for her and she was close to fainting. But there, just up ahead, was a blindingly bright light. There it was! Just outside the cave! She reached out her arm, desperate for salvation.

Her eyes opened. Julia panted, her eyes focussing on nothing. It was dark, and she was still in the Pokémon Centre bed. Even still, the sheets and her bedclothes felt hot and sticky. The culprit was the Cyndaquil nestled tightly against her chest, still sleeping soundly. The realization of that brought a quiet groan to Julia's lips. Of course Flame was going to heat up the area. She was, after all, a fire type. Chiki hadn't been any problem, though.

The thought of Chiki and laying drenched there suddenly brought an awful thought to Julia's mind. There was a good chance that yesterday had been her last day with him. It hit her like a wrecking ball. No more Chiki. Julia closed her eyes, trying not to cry. Damn Noah! Had he not gotten overemotional when Julia yelled at him, Chiki would have still been with her. What did he know about how to treat others, anyways? He was just an awful, brain-damaged idiot!

After taking many slow, deep breaths, the next problem made itself known when Flame snuggled into Julia's breast, making her tense at the slight pain. She resisted the urge to just shove Flame off of her and onto the ground, and instead wiggled around a bit, trying to make Flame loosen her grip. Her action had the opposite effect; the Cyndaquil just squeaked in her sleep and used the tips of her claws to hold on better. Julia winced and held perfectly still until Flame eventually loosened her grip again. After that, she took in another deep breath and closed her eyes. Who cared if she was hot and pained, anyways? Flame was just an adorable ball of fur whose little heart would be broken if she were pushed away. Forcing these mushy, cutesy thoughts upon herself, Julia willed herself to fall asleep again.

Inevitably, Flame reported upon having the best sleep when morning arrived while it took all of Julia's will to stretch and smile back. She was cramping all over and every crevasse of her body felt sticky and gross. Her first aid to this problem was a long, hot shower in her cramped bathroom, using lots and lots of soap. After that, she would have told Flame that from now on, she had to sleep above the covers had Flame not thanked her for letting them sleep together and adding that Julia was the nicest person in the world. It was almost as if Flame knew that if she didn't act incredibly endearing, she would lose her 'sleeping-under-the-bedcovers' privileges. _Clever little bitch, _Julia lamented_, she knows I can't resist her charms._

Just yesterday, Flame had seemed like a meek little chicken, but her true colours were shining through now. She was really a subtle manipulator! Or something along those lines.

Julia dressed herself in her day clothes, put her pyjamas into a plastic garbage bag before daring to cram them into her bag, and set out again. She was glad to be out of that Pokémon Centre room, and planned on staying out. Today, she would finally defeat Falkner so that they could leave Violet city at last! Her pace was so quick that Flame had to dash on all fours to keep up, which was difficult considering that her body was made for walking upright. Still, she kept relatively close all the way to the Gym.

Julia had stopped in front of the doors to wait for her new Pokémon, feeling a pang that it wouldn't be Chiki that she won her first Badge with. Flame opened her eyes widely to stare up at the building.

"What is this? What are we doing?" she asked anxiously, giving Julia a curious look.

"This is a Pokémon Gym," Julia explained, gesturing with her hand. "Here, you test your strength by going up against a very tough Trainer, called a Gym Leader. This Gym Leader uses flying type Pokémon, so I had trouble beating him with Chiki." She grinned at Flame. "But I'm sure that together, the two of us will have no trouble beating him at all!"

Flame winced noticeably, but still went in the door that Julia held open for her. Inside, it was dim, with only a few lights on the ceiling, and quiet, too. No people talking, no fights breaking out, not even so much as the rustle of wings. The Gym was, in fact, nearly completely deserted. The only person there besides Flame and Julia was a black-haired man, who stood by the two Gym pillars idly. When he noticed them, he waved and called out to them cheerfully.

"Hey! You're a Gym challenger, right? I'm sorry to say that Falkner is out for the afternoon. He'll be back in the evening, so you won't be able to challenge him 'til then." Julia sighed. _How ironic. The one time I actually feel ready, he isn't even here! _

"Well, thanks anyways," Julia told him and turned to leave, but he added, "If you want to battle, I suggest heading over to the Sprout Tower. There are many sages there who train with their Bellsprouts." Julia waved a hand at him over her shoulder, but considered the idea. Bellsprouts, being grass type Pokémon, should be no problem for Flame. It would be very good training for her.

Flame glanced nervously up at her Trainer when they had left. "Erm, are we going to go to that Tower place that guy mentioned?"

"I thought you said you liked battling, Flame," Julia said, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah, but I wish I didn't have to be battling all on my own." Flame lowered her head. "It makes me think that humans just get a kick out of seeing their Pokémon fight each other to near-death!" Julia didn't know how to respond to that. In reality, Flame's statement held some truth. There had been many times when Julia had questioned herself and wondered if she really wanted to be a Trainer. Jordan called her a moron for even thinking like that.

"Humans don't battle, but if you ever were to get into serious trouble, I'd help you out," Julia finally replied, wishing that she could tell Flame that she was wrong. Flame just shrugged, looking morose. Not another word was exchanged between the two of them as they walked to the Sprout Tower.

The Tower was tall and looked old, its purple eaves a faded colour and the brown paint peeling off. Inside, the air was colder and musty. Visitors stood around a thick, swaying pole that went up through the ceiling and beyond. Julia neared the tour guide enough to catch his blurb about the pole. It was said to have been a giant Bellsprout that eventually became the pole, which helped the tower stand through earthquakes and other natural disasters.

Julia spotted a ladder near the pole, next to which a sage dressed in violet robes stood. She neared it, about to ask if it led to the Trainers higher in the tower, but he held up a hand before she could even open her mouth.

"If you wish to challenge the Elder, you must first prove that you are capable of battle." He held out a PokéBall, eyeing Julia questioningly. She looked down at Flame, who gritted her teeth and stepped forward, eyes on the sage. The sage seemed to take that as an answer, and tossed his PokéBall in the air. And, just like the man in the Gym had said, his first Pokémon was a Bellsprout.

Flame waited patiently for instruction, so Julia told her, "Just use any fire type moves, Flame!" The Cyndaquil turned her head around to stare at Julia, her eyes wide. "I just use...whatever I want?!" she sputtered. Julia was taken aback by this response. Didn't Flame want to choose her own attacks?

But Flame turned around and shot an Ember at the Bellsprout, knocking it out immediately. The sage wasted no time in whipping out his next PokéBall, sending out a second Bellsprout. Flame didn't wait for the sage to issue an attack, and quickly finished it off as well. The third Bellsprout had hardly left it PokéBall before being completely assimilated. Flame turned to Julia in glee, beaming widely. Julia grinned back at her. The sage looked suspicious of the two, but gestured to the ladder.

"You may proceed," he spoke, "and hopefully, by the end of your exploration, a bond may form between you two."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Flame exclaimed, but he either did not understand her or chose to ignore her, for he simply stepped aside and did not speak. Before Julia climbed the ladder up, she stole a glance back at the tourists. The expressions they gave her were those someone who killed a baby would receive. Confused, she climbed up after Flame, helping her Pokémon to grab each next rung.

Once they were both up on the next floor, Flame squeaked happily and beamed at Julia.

"Look at all those walls!" she cried out, pointing at wooden barriers set up all over the place. "We're in a maze!"

"It seems that you're right," Julia agreed, scanning the floor. By the looks of it, the maze seemed to be set up throughout the whole tower. Some ladders going up or down were surrounded by barriers that one could only get past by coming down a ladder from the floor above. It faintly reminded her of the maze in the Gym, but this one was far more complex.

"I'll race you to the end!" Flame challenged, then took off like a bolt.

"Flame, wait!" Julia called out, but Flame had already disappeared behind a corner. Groaning, Julia ran after her, trying to figure out where her Pokémon had gone. Before long, she came across Flame, who had been stopped by one of the sages. The sage looked less than impressed that they had not been together, and wordlessly started the battle. Again, he had only three Bellsprouts, and again, Julia's simple command to Flame of using only fire type moves stunned him. Did all Trainers really dictate every single move to use to their Pokémon? She had attempted to do that a few times with Chiki, but he only ended up getting confused, especially when once, Julia wanted him to use Vine Whip on a Trainer's Weedle.

After the battle, the sage gave Julia a few PokéDollars and a disapproving look. Flame scowled at him and muttered to Julia, "That guy's just mad that we beat him." Even though she said it very firmly, she looked doubtful.

Flame began to run ahead, but Julia said, "Hey, Flame, can we stick together instead of splitting up like before?" Flame frowned, but nodded.

"As long as I can lead us, 'kay?" And with that, she set off, Julia following her for a change. This time, however, she became lost. She whipped her head around, re-followed her scent, and retraced her steps to the beginning before setting off and failing to find her way again.

"May I lead?" Julia asked. "I think I might be able to find the way." While the maze was more complicated than the Gym puzzle, it was still easy enough. But Flame stubbornly shook her head.

"No, I can do this! I'm really good at these! You'll just get us more lost!"

"Trust me, Flame," Julia insisted, kneeling to look her in the eye. "I can get us through here." Flame looked doubtful, then sighed.

"Fine, then. You go first." She looked defeated, so Julia affirmed, "I know that you can do it. I just want to show you that I can, too." Within a minute of Julia's careful leading, they had made it to the ladder that led to the next floor up. Flame sighed again, then smiled at her Trainer.

"Okay, I guess you're pretty good at mazes, too," she admitted, "not that I ever doubted you or anything."

Overlooking Flame's obvious fib, Julia help Flame up the ladder and followed up after. On this floor, there was a straight path to the Elder sage, who sat cross-legged at the back of the room, meditating. Julia cocked her head sideways. There was no puzzle up here. So what was up with all of the inaccessible ladders on the other floor?

Of course, this only made things much easier, so Julia casually walked forward with Flame by her side. Three sages stood before her, all holding one PokéBall each. The middle sage stepped towards Julia.

"You must battle all three of us at once," he informed her. Julia glanced at Flame, whose expression she could not determine. Flame just had a hard look on her face. The three monks then stepped back and released their Pokmon, all of which were, unsurprisingly, Bellsprouts. Flame came forward, facing her opponents.

"Flame, use your fire type attacks!" The sages' shocked expressions Julia already had anticipated, but when Flame mowed down two of the Bellsprouts that had stood too close to each other, the response of the third sage was immediate.

"Bellsprout, Razor Leaf!" he called out, and his Bellsprout shot several grassy strands at Flame, who didn't have time to dodge. The attack hardly pushed her back, however, and she ignited the flames on her back and leapt into a Flame Wheel attack. She easily struck the Bellsprout and it fainted instantly. The sage looked furious, but he took Bellsprout back into its PokéBall without hesitation. The three sages came forward and handed Julia some PokéDollars as prize money, but none of them looked pleased with their battle. Julia stuffed the money into her pocket, then beckoned to Flame.

Flame looked odd, though; she trembled a little and her eyes were tightly shut.

"Flame, are you okay?" Julia asked her. Flame nodded at her, but she still looked like she was a bit pained. "Are you sure?" she repeated in concern.

"I'm fine, Julia!" Flame's voice was suddenly cheery and she made a visible effort to stop trembling. Although Julia was nowhere near convinced, Flame to be putting in so much effort that she decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and believe her.

They walked around the central pole that came up in the middle of the floor and came up to the elder sage. He grunted, then opened his eyes and stood.

"My name is Li," he said in a soft, raspy voice. "What are the names of my challengers who hardly speak to each other during battle?"

Julia ducked her head in slight embarrassment and was about to introduce herself when Flame suddenly piped up, "I'm Flame, and this is Julia! And - oops!" She seemed to realize in the middle of speaking that the Trainer is supposed to be the one to speak. However, the elder chuckled.

"So, Flame and Julia, is it?" He looked to Julia for affirmation, so she nodded. "Very well. I will enjoy seeing how the two of you fare against me and my friends." He tossed a PokéBall and a Bellsprout emerged. Julia took a few steps back to make room for the battle and Flame copied her.

"Flame, use Ember!" Julia told her. Even though she commanded an attack and not just for her to use fire type attacks, Flame instantly did as told, blasting burning hot embers from her back at the Bellsprout. The weak attack was still enough to knock it out in one hit.

Li knelt down and whispered, "You have done your best, dear Bellsprout." Then he retracted the Pokémon, slowly standing again. His small action seemed to light a small fire within Julia's chest. This sage was very different from the others. His Pokémon were not tools, but friends. Perhaps this battle would be more difficult.

He now let out his next Pokémon, another Bellsprout. Instead of attacking right away, Flame stood ready where she was, awaiting her next command.

"Use Flame Wheel!" Julia suggested, and Flame curled up into a fiery ball, striking her opponent fast and hard. As with his other Bellsprout, the elder whispered words of encouragement to his Pokémon before putting it back into its PokéBall. Flame stood halfway between the two Trainers, then glanced back at Julia. Was it over already?

A brown feather floated down above Flame, and Julia's eyes widened. She didn't have time to look up. She just leapt forwards, towards her Pokémon, a cry escaping her lips. A second later, a furiously sharp point slammed into Julia's shoulder, knocking her sideways.

She crashed to the ground beside Flame, who had hardly even been able to register what was happening. The Hoothoot that had struck Julia now flew up, unsure of what to do. Pain surged through Julia's body and she curled up into a ball, trying to grit her teeth against the pain. Flame's eyes filled with tears and she ran to Julia's side.

"Julia!" she screeched, tears rushing down her face. "Why would you do that?! Oh, Please be okay!" She grabbed Julia's hand with both paws, trembling again. Julia panted, whimpering, but smiled up at Flame.

"I...I'm fine, Flame. Don't worry about me. Are you...okay, though?"

"Of course I am!" she wailed. "You're the one who got hit by that attack, you dummy!" She nuzzled deeper and put her forehead against Julia's cheek, shaking. Julia put her hands around Flame's tiny body and, with a little difficulty, managed to sit up.

"I told you, I'm fine," she whispered to Flame, stroking her Pokémon's back. Glancing to the side, she spotted elder Li walking towards them with a small smile.

"Although many Trainers see Hoothoot coming in for an attack, few are able to warn their Pokémon in time. Even fewer, however, actually shield their Pokémon from the hit!" He chuckled again. "Though I thought at first that the two of you had not formed a bond, I now see that not only have you a bond, but a very strong one that could only come from a long time of being friends with one another."

Julia blushed and quickly replied, "Actually, we only really met yesterday. We don't even know each other that well yet!" A thoughtful expression came to Li's face.

"Is that so? How very unusual..." He closed his eyes, then half-opened them. "However, the bond does exist. Somehow, you two have been able to become close in less than two days. How odd..." He was interrupted by a sudden glow emanating from Flame's body. Flame clenched her teeth, trying to push it back, but Julia realized what was happening.

"Flame, you're evolving!" Flame looked at her with an oddly afraid look in her eyes.

"Is...that okay?" she asked, her voice trembling as much as her body was.

"Of course!" Julia exclaimed. Flame stared deep into Julia's eyes, then relaxed. She grew brighter and brighter until Julia had to squint at her. At the same time, Flame grew larger. Her limbs and torso became longer, and her head became more compact. Julia felt her hind paws touch her leg and Flame put her weight onto them to steady herself. When the light faded, Flame opened her large, red eyes and stared forwards in shock. She was no longer a Cyndaquil, but a Quilava. She looked down at herself, inspecting her lithe new body. Flame was now taller than Julia's torso.

"I had noticed as you walked in that you seemed to be holding something back," Li spoke up, "and now your stress has been released." Flame nodded, then looked at Julia pleadingly.

"Julia...am I still cute?" she whimpered, her eyes threatening tears. Julia laughed at the question and hugged her, ignoring the sharp bite of pain in her shoulder.

"Is that all you were concerned about? Of course you are! You'll always be the most adorable being ever!"

"Thank you!" Flame cried out, now laughing as well. Even Li lent a chuckle. Julia set Flame down then, grabbing a wooden wall for support, rose to her feet again. Flame also stood on her hind legs, and tried taking a shaky step forwards. She was quite dismayed that her body was built for walking on all fours, but continued to attempt it on just her back paws.

"I admit defeat, Julia and Flame," the elder said, "and I believe that you are more than ready to take on Falkner at the Pokémon Gym." Julia smiled and nodded, then put a hand onto her shoulder. Although the spot hurt, there was no wetness to indicate that she was bleeding. That was a huge relief.

"Thank you, elderly," Julia said, meaning to be respectful but realizing too late that when 'elder' and 'Li' are said too quickly that they merged into the one, disrespectful word. Li burst into laughter, nearly falling over.

"You may have seen through the discreet attack from above, but you fell for the 'elder Li!' Ha ha ha!" Wiping tears from his eyes, he faced the stunned duo and told them, "My name is Roger. I just like to get people with that one!" Julia rolled her eyes, then beckoned to Flame and walked back to the ladder that would take them down.

It was close to lunch time when they left the tower, so they went out to another restaurant, this one being just a cheaper, fast food restaurant. Julia ordered with Flame a box of Combusken wings and fries and they went out to sit on a bench by a large pond. Despite her hind legs being thinner and weaker than before, Flame stubbornly continued walking on them alone.

"Hey, Flame," Julia began as they started to eat, "why did Noah give you a nice nickname if he didn't like you very much?"

Flame gave her a funny look and said something that would puzzle Julia for a long time.

"It's not my nickname. And he didn't give it to me." Julia blinked.

"What? What do you mean?"

"Flame is my real name. It's like your name, Julia. Julia isn't a nickname, right? Flame isn't, either."

"No, I get it. I mean, did Noah really not name you?" Flame shook her head.

"It's my name. You don't 'get named,' you're just born with one."

"Uh, Flame..." Julia frowned at her. "Nobody is born knowing their name. Either your parents name you, or your Trainer does."

"Really?!" Flame cracked the bone of the wing she was chewing on in shock and stared at her Trainer.

"Well, I was born with my name, whether you believe me or not!"

"I do believe you, but..." Julia trailed off and stared over the water. "It's just weird, that's all." Flame finished off her wing, putting the large, unchewable bones inside the corner of the box and grabbed a pawful of fries.

It was very weird, Julia realized. In fact, something was weird about Flame in general. What Li, or rather, Roger, had said about their bond being like a long-time friendship, too...

Julia couldn't understand it, but when she figured out that Flame would get attacked from above, a true surge of panic had come over her. She felt as if she was throwing her life away to protect Flame's, even though the attack may not even have knocked her out. What was more, even now, Julia felt that same closeness, that if it truly came down to life or death, she knew she would do it again for her. _Why do I feel this way?_ Julia wondered, absently grabbing the same wing that Flame was trying to take.

"Hey, Julia, you okay?" Flame asked, looking at her. "You seem a little out of it."

"Sorry. I'm just thinking about what happened with that Hoothoot."

"Oh, right!" She suddenly took on a protective tone. "Julia, I promise to, someday, return the favour!"

"What? What do you mean?" Julia asked.

"If you're ever in danger, I'll shield you from getting hurt. When I get stronger, okay?" Flame smiled. "Because we're friends!"

Julia was overcome with emotion and she nodded. "Best friends," she corrected, taking Flame's paw. They grinned at each other, then went back to eating their lunch.

* * *

**'Tis but a flesh wound! XD**


	4. Chapter 4

"So, Julia, you really don't remember anything about your past?"

Julia stood on the beach with the Cyndaquil named Flame. Now that her vision had cleared, she could see Krabby sitting on rocks, blowing bubbles into the air. It was beautiful, but she didn't understand how she had gotten here or, more importantly, why she was a Pokémon.

"No, nothing at all. I'm sorry." It felt odd, yet strangely natural, for Julia to be communicating with mostly body language, but she got the feeling that whatever language she had spoken before she would not be able to speak as a Pikachu.

"So, what are you going to do now?" he asked. "If you were a human before, then you must be from farther away. And because you have amnesia..." He trailed off.

"What do you think I should do?" Julia asked, defeated. "I don't know this place at all, or anybody here...Well, besides you. Sort of."

"I wish I could help you," Flame sighed. An awkward silence fell between them. Julia began to wonder if she should just leave when a purple something flew at Flame and knocked him over. A stone fell out of the brown bag he had around his shoulder.

"Hey! What gives?" Flame squeaked indignantly, glaring at the purple something, which Julia identified as a Zubat. "Watch where you're going!"

"I think you should be the one getting out of our way!" sneered the Zubat. Before Flame could come up with a comeback, a Koffing swooped down from behind and, enveloping the stone in his fumes, lifted it up and away from him.

"Hey, give that back! That's mine!" Flame yelled, balling his paws into fists.

"Or what?" jeered Zubat. "Or else you'll knock us out?"

"Yeah! That's exactly what I'll do if you don't give it back to me!"

Koffing chuckled. "Well, hit us with your best shot now! Prove that you can knock us out!"

Flame only looked fierce for another heartbeat before his rage disappeared and he began to tremble. This made Koffing and Zubat both erupt into bouts of laughter, Koffing nearly dropping Flame's stone.

"You're just a big baby!" laughed Koffing. "You couldn't muster up the courage to even attack us!"

"What a total loser!"chimed in Zubat. Julia was losing her temper with these two bullies.

"Cut that out!" Julia yelled at them. "Just give it back to him, you jerks!"

"Aw, boo hoo hoo. Go cry me a river," taunted Koffing. "This looks pretty valuable, doesn't it? We're not about to just hand it over. Or are you going to fight for it?"

Julia growled, but her anger had also melted. She had no idea how to battle, and even if she could fight, she was certain that she was nowhere near strong enough to beat them both.

"Woah, you're both losers!" exclaimed Zubat. "Are we ever lucky that you were the ones with that treasure!"

"See ya later, chumps!" guffawed Koffing, and with that, he and Zubat flew away into a wide opening in the rock behind them. Julia turned back to Flame, but he looked heartbroken.

"I can't believe this. Those two stole my treasure!" He looked like he was about to start crying.

"Well, let's go after them!" Julia insisted, pointing at the cave. "They can only go so deep before the cave ends, right? I'll bet they're just waiting there until they think we've gone away, but if we follow them, we can fight them and take back your treasure!"

"You - you'd help me fight them?" Flame asked incredulously. "But I bet they're really strong. And I've heard that that cave goes pretty deep down. And it's probably filled with wild Pokémon! We'd have to fight a lot to even get to them! Is it even worth the effort?"

"If that treasure is really so special to you, then of course it is!" Julia took his paw. "You could show me how to battle. And I don't care how much fighting I have to do - I just know that I definitely want to show those bullies who's boss!" Flame nodded slowly, then put on a determined face.

"You're right! My treasure is my most important possession in the world to me, and I'm not just going to let those thugs have it! Let's go after them!" He then clasped onto Julia's paw, too, and they walked into the cave side-by-side.

Inside the beach cave, it was dark and damp and a salty smell filled the air. But Julia caught a faint scent of Koffing's poisonous gasses, and she led the way boldly. Suddenly, a Shellos spotted them and approached, looking hostile.

"Alright, Julia," Flame said, taking the lead. "Watch me carefully." He neared the Shellos fearlessly and tackled it backwards, knocking it unconscious. "Even though the Pokémon in here are pretty weak, there's lot's of them, so watch your back and be on your guard." Julia nodded. The move looked easy enough, but why couldn't she, as a Pikachu, use any electric type moves? Wouldn't that be easier than attacking them?

They travelled through the narrow passageways until Julia spotted a Kabuto. She stopped walking and waited for it to approach before she slammed into it the way Flame had shown her. And as he had said, they were super weak - it fainted in a single hit. Over time, she figured out how to Tackle in a way that dealt more immediate damage, as the attack called Quick Attack, and used that instead. The cave did go on for a long time, but Julia felt comforted by Flame's constant presence at her back. She just followed Koffing's scent along the paths.

"Hey, uh, Flame," Julia began as they walked, "what did those two steal? Why is it so important to you?"

Flame cringed, then, ducking his head in slight embarrassment, replied, "It's my personal treasure. I call it my relic fragment, and it's my most treasured possession. I...can't really remember how I found it, but one day, I just did. It's got an odd pattern on it, one that I've never seen before. I feel like it's really important, somehow, and it's sorta my inspiration for exploring. What if..." His eyes shone and he stared out at nothing, as if looking at something very distant. "What if it's the key to a great treasure, and it makes me really famous? Or what if it can save the world someday? Just thinking about all the possibilities makes me excited!"

He caught himself and looked at Julia sheepishly. "Sorry, I kinda got carried away there. It's just...my lifelong goal is to unlock the mystery of my relic fragment. That's why it's my most special possession."

"I get it," Julia reassured him with a smile. "It's great that you have such a great dream. I guess mine would be to find out who I am and to go home."

"Yeah, I guess so," Flame agreed. There seemed to be a slight change in his expression, Julia noticed. Did he seem a little disappointed?

Finally, the cave opened up in a spacious pit, and it was brighter than the rest of the cave. There floated Koffing and Zubat, both of whom looked absolutely shocked to see them. Flame's relic fragment lay on the ground just behind them.

"So! You followed us in, did you?" sneered Zubat. "Will you battle us, or will you chicken out again?"

Flame looked uncertain, taking a slight step back, but Julia put a reassuring paw on his shoulder, nodding at him. He tensed, then stepped forwards.

"No, this time, we'll battle you! And when we win, you'll give me back my relic fragment!"

"Big talk, little acts," yawned Koffing. "So attack us!"

Julia decided to try something. She concentrated, closing her eyes, and felt a spark building up in her cheek pouches. The moment the electricity built up enough, she leaped forwards in an electrified tackle at Koffing, shocking him. He yelped as he fell down gracefully through the air and landed on the ground, deflated. Zubat stared in surprise, not seeing Flame, who came in for a Tackle and struck him critically. Both of the thugs were now on the hard ground, knocked out. Flame grinned at Julia triumphantly, then grabbed the relic fragment from its spot behind Koffing and Zubat. Just as he shoved it into his bag, the two baddies flew up again.

"That victory was just a fluke, got it?" yelled Zubat, beginning to back away.

"Yeah! We'll get you next time, when the boss is with us!" threatened Koffing, but the speed at which they dashed out of there proved their newfound terror of Flame and Julia.

"How could I have ever been afraid of them? They were just as weak as all the wild Pokémon in here!" Flame laughed. "Did you see them fly outta here? It was like they saw a ghost or something!" Julia nodded in agreement, snickering. Then they left, too.

Outside, the light of the sun was only just fading, bubbles still floating around. Did their trek through the beach cave really take so little time?

"Thanks again for helping me get back my relic fragment!" Flame exclaimed, looking happy enough to burst. "Hey, wanna take a look at the pattern?" Without waiting for an answer, he set down the stone on the sand between them.

Upon closer inspection, it was about the size of Julia's head, and top was completely flat and smooth. A white pattern was inscribed on its face, one that did not even remotely look like anything Julia had ever seen before.

"It's really interesting," she remarked, her eyes wide.

"Just out of curiousity," Flame began, looking eager, "does it seem familiar to you? I mean, I know that you lost your memory and all, but does it, I don't know, remind you of anything? Maybe it's from wherever you're from!" Julia sighed and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Flame, but I've never seen this pattern before. I'm quite sure of it."

"Right. I guess not. I was just...overly hopeful about it." He tucked the relic fragment back into his bag. Behind him, the last of the bubbles floated by, the sun close to completely vanishing into the waves.

"Where are you going to go now?" Julia asked him, trying to distract him from his disappointment. "I don't really have anywhere to go next, so if I could follow you for a bit, maybe find a place to stay for the night..."

"Oh, right. About that..." He cringed and looked at the sand. "Right before I found you zonked out here, I was going to apply for Wigglytuff's Guild, but I didn't have the guts to go in." At Julia's questioning expression, he explained, "It's a guild where Pokémon train to become explorers of Mystery Dungeons, like the beach cave, except the Mystery Dungeons they explore are tougher. I was hoping that if I joined, I might be able to find some clues about my relic fragment while exploring. But I was too much of a chicken to even go in to the building!"

Flame seemed completely depressed, and Julia wished that there was some way she could cheer him up. A crazy thought came to her; a stupid idea that would probably only make things worse. _What if I signed up at the Guild with him?_ All of the problems of that leapt out at her in her mind - she had only just met him and he might have different, sinister motives for joining; he might think she was too weak; what if nobody in the Guild liked them? And, worst of all, what if they became good friends, only for her to find out who she was and return to wherever she came from, leaving him forever? But he was the only one she knew, and what other options did she really have?

"If I...if I come with you, will you sign up for the Guild?" she blurted. Flame looked completely taken aback and stared at her. Julia added, "I mean, if I find out how to return home, then I might have to leave you. But by then, I'm sure we'll already have made friends and - "

Unexpectedly, Flame cried out in joy while leaping forward at Julia, hugging her tightly. Julia blinked, then hugged him back.

"Julia, you're the best!" he squeaked. "I'll do it! I'll join the Guild with you! Let's be good friends, okay?"

"Yeah," agreed Julia, snuggling into his fur, which was warm to the touch. _One of the perks of being a fire type,_ she supposed. Then, they broke off their hug and Flame led the way to the Guild. By the time they had climbed up the long flight of steps, the sky was turning black and some stars were appearing. From all the way up there on the ledge, Julia could see lights glistening below.

Flame peered down at where Julia was looking and explained, "That's Treasure Town you see down there. It's a pretty great view from up here, isn't it?" Julia nodded in agreement, watching only a while longer before turning around to face the Guild entrance.

A few torches blazed in front of a tent that they illuminated. Julia tried to make out the shape, and guessed that it was painted to look like - what else - a Wigglytuff. A grate had been made in the ground near the entrance. Flame took an audible deep breath, then walked over to stand on it.

A voice from below shrilled, "Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected! Whose footprint? Whose footprint?" Flame held perfectly still, but Julia could somehow sense the fear rolling off of him in small waves. So Pokémon could sense fear too, huh? That was pretty cool. "The Pokémon is Cyndaquil! The Pokémon is Cyndaquil! Come on in, Cyndaquil!" Flame sighed in relief and stepped off the grate, glancing at Julia.

"Now, you step on the grate!" he told her, and Julia did as told. The voice called out from almost directly beneath her.

"Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected! Whose footprint? Whose footprint?" There was a long pause before the voice continued, "The Pokémon is... The Pokémon is...uh..."

"Well, Diglett, whose footprint is it?" the voice bellowed. Another pause, then, "WHADDAYA MEAN, YOU DON'T KNOW?! JUST TELL ME WHICH POKÉMON THE BLOODY FOOTPRINT BELONGS TO, YOU MISERABLE LITTLE - "

Julia exchanged a glance with Flame, who just shrugged at her. Yelling and curses came from under the grate. A small mount of dirt appeared in front of the grate and a Diglett popped up. He surveyed Julia up and down, then disappeared again. There was a break in the yelling, broken only by loud, "uh-huh's" until finally the voice screamed, "THAT'S A FUCKING PIKACHU, YOU DOLT! MY GODS, WERE YOU DROPPED ON YOUR HEAD AS A CHILD?!"

Flame giggled awkwardly. "Odd how only one voice seems to be doing all the yelling...?" he offered, looking slightly exasperated. Julia peered down the grate, waiting for the yelled to stop to try to ask if she could enter the tent, but it sounded like whoever was yelling had moved away from the grate. The non-stop screaming sounded farther away, then came closer and closer until the Pokémon finally emerged out the tent entrance. It was a Loudred. What a surprise. Beside him was the Diglett, who was mumbling apologetically.

Loudred finally stopped yelled obscenities and snapped, "Awfully sorry for the delay, you two. Diglett was just being a blind little arse and was giving us all a hard time. APOLOGIZE AT ONCE TO THESE TWO, DIGLETT!"

"Sorry, folks," Diglett mumbled. "I've never seen a Pikachu before, so I couldn't recognize your footprint."

"LOUDER!" insisted Loudred.

"I'm sorry for the hold-up!" Diglett yelled, then gave Loudred the stink-eye. Loudred stomped on Diglett, forcing him back into the ground.

"Fuckin' pest," muttered Loudred. He addressed Flame and Julia now. "Are you two applying at the Guild?"

"Um, yeah," Flame said, a little two loudly. Julia's ears were ringing from all of the yelling. She wondered anxiously if Loudred gave Diglett special treatment, or if he yelled at everyone.

"Then follow me," he said, beckoning with his arm. The two were led down a ladder into a large room lit with torches. The room was mostly deserted, but the Pokémon there gave Loudred dirty looks. Some of them looked like they had just been woken up.

"What is all this commotion about?" exclaimed a Chatot that came up from another ladder beside the one Flame, Julia, and Loudred hade just gone down. "How many times must I tell you not to yell like that at bed time?!"

"Whatever, Chatot," Loudred muttered. "These two want to apprentice at the Guild."

"What, these two kids?" Chatot asked, hardly looking at them. "Haven't they heard how difficult the apprentice training program is? Are they idiots?"

"YOU ask them; after all, they're standing right here." Loudred sighed then stomped away, ignoring the Pokémon that yelled at him as he went. Chatot scrutinized both of them again, shaking his head and muttering, "Children, children..."

"So, um, it's a really hard program?" Flame asked nervously. Chatot nodded, turning his back to them.

"You ought to see the hordes of trainees running away in fear each day - " At that moment, he seemed to figure out for the first time that he was driving terror into both Flame and Julia, and he suddenly whipped around again, beaming. "No, no, no! What I meant to say is that the program is very easy for newcomers and young apprentices! Not difficult at all!"

"Geez, he really put on a different face in a flash there, didn't he?" Flame whispered to Julia, still unsettled. Julia nodded back at him, shuddering.

"Now, then, follow me, you two," Chatot called out cheerily, "and you can come form a team officially." The two exchanged glances, but followed Chatot down the ladder. Below was another spacious room. Here, there were not as many Pokémon about. The floor was quiet.

"Hey, Julia, check it out!" Flame grinned. "Look! That window leads to outside!"

"Shut up, kid!" snapped Chatot. "In case you didn't know, this Guild has been built on the side of a cliff. Now, follow me, and do not, I repeat, DO NOT disrespect the Guildmaster in any way, you hear?" With that, he knocked on a door with his talon and called out cheerfully, "Oh, Guildmaster, I'm coming in ~ !" Then he opened the door, Julia and Flame slowly following him in. There were more blazing torches inside, and treasure chests filled with apples. On a mat, facing away from them, stood Wigglytuff, motionless.

"Here are a couple of new kids!" Chatot chirped. "They would like to form a team!" The Guildmaster said nothing. Suddenly, he continued to say nothing. Was he even breathing?

"Erm...Guildmaster?" Chatot asked nervously. For another few moments, nothing was said. Finally, the Guildmaster turned around. He beamed at the initiates with a smile as wide as the sun.

"Hiya!" he said brightly. "Nice to meet you, ...?"

"My name's Flame and this is my partner, Julia," Flame introduced, flustered by the surprisingly happy nature of the Guildmaster.

"Nice to meet you, Flame and Julia!" he finished. "My name is Wigglytuff! You two have come to apply at the Guild, right? What name would you like to give your team?"

"You choose a name," Julia told Flame. If she did eventually leave, she wanted him to have a name that he wanted.

"We'll be...Team Eleblaze!" Flame grinned at his partner. "How does that sound?"

"I like it," Julia agreed, noticing painfully that included both of their types. She almost wished that she would never find out who she was and have to leave.

"Team Eleblaze it is, then!" Wigglytuff announced. "I'll just register you as a team! Registering...Registering..." His facial expression never changed until he yelled, "Registered! YOOM-TAH!" Flame and Julia jumped a little at that last phrase, but Wigglytuff was as cheerful as before. "Yay! Now you two are officially a team! Congratulations!" He pulled a golden box out from behind his back and presented it to them. "This is your exploration kit! It has your badges, a Wonder Map, and your Treasure Bag! They'll all come in super handy!"

Flame glanced at his own small brown bag and frowned, as if wondering if it wasn't enough. Julia looked over at Chatot, who'd had the same, plastered-on expression throughout Wigglytuff's entire speech. He still seemed confused about why Wigglytuff had been silent for a minute. Julia was, too. But Wigglytuff seemed nice enough. And she got the feeling that she had made the right choice in choosing to join the Guild with Flame, even if it was just for a while.

Night was now in full swing. The full moon could be seen from Flame and Julia's window. They had been assigned a small room with two beds. Despite its overly tiny size, it had a large window that let in the moonlight. Flame and Julia lay in their beds, neither quite asleep yet.

"Hey, Julia," Flame whispered. "You still awake?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks again...for helping me work up the courage to come here. I've been wanting to join for such a long time, but it's thanks to you that I was finally able to. Maybe...maybe you came from wherever you came from so you could help me out!"

Julia snorted. "Not a chance, Flame," she snickered. "But it's a nice guess, anyways."

"Yeah, it was a stupid thing to say," he admitted. "But I guess that's how much it means to me. I've never really had friends. I mean, sure, I'm friendly with some of the folks in Treasure Town, but people always get annoyed with me because I talk too much and then I'm always too timid to be useful. You're the first...real friend I've had."

"...and, at least here, you are, too," Julia replied. She turned her head to the side to look at him. "Thanks for being my friend, Flame."

"My pleasure!" grinned Flame. "Now, let's get some sleep so we can be well-rested for tomorrow!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Greetings, Earthlings! It is I, NaturallyDark! XD I've resolved to upload a new chapter every week. If I do not, feel free to harass me until I do - that is, if there actually is anyone reading my story! Wait, of course there is! After all, someone must be reading this right now!**

**I can't thank you enough for taking the time to read my story. I have lots planned for it, including a sequel, but your support really helps! If you want, please leave a review to let me know what you like or don't like - I love criticism! Hope you enjoy _Embers of the Past_!**

* * *

Feathers fluttered through the air, caws and chirrups of bird Pokémon surrounding the Gym. Julia stood with Flame on a narrow glass pathway, trying not to look down. Falkner had returned to his Gym, and Julia decided that it was high time to return and challenge him again. The other Trainers along the pathway had already been defeated, but Flame was unable to execute any move other than Ember, due to the pathway being too narrow to move much around on, and also due to the Pidgeys and Spearows being real asses and flying just out of Flame's reach. On top of that, Flame was still going strong with her attempt to continue to be bipedal, even though she was clearly having a rough time with it.

Now, they stood in front of Falkner, flabbergasted. He had his back turned to them, and he was talking loudly on his PokéGear that seemed to be, from the snippets of words Julia caught, about some sort of fashion crisis in Fortree city in Hoenn. _Great Arceus!_ she thought in frustration to herself._ Doesn't he see that he has challengers? Can't he wait until later to chat? _

Finally, Falkner ended his call and turned around. He rolled his eyes when he caught sight of Julia. "Oh, it's you again. Alright, let's finish this quickly. I don't have time to mess around with little kids like you." He then noticed Flame and added, "Did you get a different Pokémon, too? What, Chikorita wasn't good enough for you?"

"It's not like that!" insisted Julia, but he just scoffed and let out his Pidgeotto.

"Whatever. I've got more important matters to attend to than battling some fresh kid." Flame carefully crawled between Julia's legs, trembling slightly when she glanced down. The glass platform that Falkner stood on for the battle was hardly wide enough to hold a Snorlax; Julia couldn't even stand on it herself. Flame walked out onto it, trying to size up Pidgeotto, who had not yet taken wing.

Falkner sounded the first command of, "Use Gust, Pidgeotto!" Now Pidgeotto rose in the air, beating his wings powerfully in Flame's direction. She was forced to set down her front paws to gain stability in the powerful wind he generated, but squinted up at her opponent with a determined glare.

"Ember, Flame!" Julia called out to her. Using Flame Wheel here would be suicide. Fire shot out Flame's neck and lower back as she sent Embers flying at Pidgeotto. The wind slowed them down, however, as well as causing them to blow out the moment they made contact with his feathers.

"Hey, Flame!" called Julia. "Try using Quick Attack to take him down!" Flame braced herself, then leapt up with all her might, grabbing on to one of Pidgeotto's wings with her small fangs, then letting the flames spurt out of her neck again to startle him out of the sky. Pidgeotto struggled, but the extra weight on his wing caused him to drop like a stone, missing the platform entirely. Julia ran out to the edge of the platform to watch in horror as the two crashed into the floor below, the weight breaking the wooden boards they landed on.

"Flame!" Julia called out. "Are you alright?" Flame leapt back from the wreckage, paused to grin up at Julia, then Flame Wheeled into Pidgeotto. The already weakened Pokémon stood no chance as Flame rolled over him over and over.

"Shit!" Falkner cursed. "Pidgeotto!" Then, without warning, he jumped down from the ledge onto the floor below. The ledges were not an awful way up, but the impact from the leap down would definitely be jarring. Julia took a deep breath, then also jumped down, crashing heavily onto her feet before feebly falling over. _Ow ow ow ow ow_, she mentally whimpered. _Why can't I have just taken the elevator down? That's what I get for trying to show off, I guess!_ Flame only looked worried until Julia picked herself up, smiling casually.

"I'm good, I'm good," she assured Flame through her agony. She officially hated everything to do with bird Pokémon as of that moment. Falkner stroked Pidgeotto's head soothingly, then returned him to his PokéBall. Sighing, he stood up and dug through his pocket, pulling out a Badge.

"Here, take your Badge," he muttered. "I usually have Fearow, too, but I've lent him to Winona for a while, so I have no other Pokémon to fight with right now. Kudos to you, and all that." He glanced at Flame momentarily, then walked away, possibly to re-station himself up on his perch.

"We did it, Flame!" Julia cried out happily, lifting Flame in a hug. "We got our first Gym Badge!"

"You got your first Gym Badge," Flame corrected embarrassedly, but Julia shook her head.

"Because you were the one doing most of the work, our Victory is shared!"

"Geez, Julia," Flame snickered, "aren't you getting a bit worked up over nothing?" Julia set Flame back down and they walked back out of the Gym together, the hole in the floor completely ignored by everyone but the advisor at the Gym statues, whose eyebrows were furrowed together in concern as he rushed back to try and fix it. Once they were outside, Julia checked the map on her PokéGear. The next town, Goldenrod, was a fairly good ways away. Seeing as it was quite late in the day, it didn't make sense to set off now, as they would arrive too late and possibly get lost. Goldenrod was, after all, the largest city in all of Johto. However, there was something nearby that Flame and Julia could do.

"Alright, Flame, follow me!" Julia said, beckoning with her arm. Flame followed her as quickly as she could, but Julia discovered quickly that due to Flame's resolution to not use her front paws in walking, she had to slow down her pace once again. She just hoped that Flame's next evolution would be more suited for walking on two legs.

They walked along the sidewalks with the sun in their eyes half the time. Violet city was still a city, and while it wasn't overly big, it was a lot larger than New Bark or even Cherrygrove. It took nearly half an hour to cross it at the fastest pace Flame could manage, but they finally did come to the gate between the city and the next route. They passed through, coming onto Route 36, a short route that connected to Route 37 and led to both Goldenrod and Ecruteak city. But the south exit led to a very different area. Another gate separated the path from the famous Ruins of Alph, the place where they headed to now. Signs inside the gate warned visitors not to damage or graffiti the ruins, and to avoid Trainer battles.

When they emerged from the gate, Julia glanced down at Flame to see what she thought. And judging from her expression, she was in total and utter awe. In the dying light, the Ruins of Alph seemed like wonders from another world. A small river passed by ancient stone buildings engraved with strange runes. Rocks were set up in careful, distinct patterns around the place, and the well-worn path passing through was dotted with tourists, who took pictures and pointed at what they saw.

Flame took a slow step forward, her eyes shining. Suddenly, she dashed on all fours, her excitement too much for her.

"This - this is amazing!" she squeaked energetically. "Come here, Julia! Take a look at this!" Julia jogged over to where Flame stood, staring at one of the square, stone huts. She ran her paws along the surface, squinting at the runes. "Look, these ones are different," Flame murmured, pointing at some seemingly-random marks and dents. "These are in footprint runes. I can read footprint runes!" As Julia scrutinized the surface, she realized that Flame was correct. While most of the symbols scratched in looked like the Pokémon Unown, what Flame was looking at below was a pattern of different Pokémon footprints. Then she suddenly absorbed what she had just said.

"Wait. Did you say that you could read them?!" asked Julia.

"All Pokémon can read footprints," Flame explained. "I bet any Pokémon would be able to read these. Look here, it says..." She narrowed her eyes in concentration. "...We will be...forgotten long time...stone defend time...protect..." For a minute longer, she mumbled to herself, scanning the wall, then stepped back from the stone. "It seems to be some sort of weird legend," she decided, "about some sort of stones that protect time. It doesn't make an awful lot of sense, though. It looks like footprints meant other things back then. Like this - " She prodded the wall, " - this reads as 'false god of dirt.' Obviously, it can't really mean that. A god of dirt would be weird."

"Wow, you seem to be really getting into this," Julia grinned. "I'm glad we went here."

"Yeah, me too!" Flame smiled back at her, walking ahead, once again on her hind legs. "Just think of all the mysteries waiting to be uncovered! Let's explore together!" Julia followed Flame around the ruins, hopping over the river with her to reach another hut. Flame led the way inside it, Julia close behind. The inside of the room was pitch-black, so Flame activated her flames on her neck and rear to add some light. In front of them, in the middle of the room, was an odd, u-shaped structure built of rock. Julia and Flame approached it together. There were several small square slabs within a frame in the middle of the structure, each printed with part of a pattern. They seemed to be all turned around the wrong way, so Julia carefully pulled one out, then set it back in the way she thought it should go.

"Hey! Let me see what you're doing!" Flame cried out, trying to stretch herself higher to look at the puzzle. Julia lifted her up, then turned around another slab. "You're doing it wrong!" Flame interrupted, prying it back out with her claws then gripping it firmly between her paws. She set it back in again carefully and took out another. The hairs on the back of Julia's neck rose as she felt anxious.

"Careful not to drop it, Flame," she warned, squeezing Flame tighter. Her Pokémon turned her head and gave her a look.

"What does it look like I'm doing? And stop trying to choke me!" Julia mumbled an apology and loosened her grip, watching Flame with more intensity until the pattern began to take shape as a Helix fossil. There also seemed to be some Unown runes inscribed in the panels, but Julia had no time to read them, as Flame's setting in the last slab sounded a click and the floor rumbled, giving way beneath their feet. With a cry, they fell down onto another floor below, Flame cushioned from the fall by Julia's already abused body. _How much pain do I have to go through today?!_

Down here, it was darker, and when Julia looked up, she could see a square of light above her, a bit too high up for her to reach. _That must be where we fell from, _she realized._ So how do we get back up there? _

"Julia, look! On the floor!" Startled, Julia took a step back and looked at the floor. In the dim light, she could see more Unown runes engraved on the ground. She squinted and tried to read them what was written. _They came ... second ... from a place else... against all ... but never ..._ Some of the runes were too faint to read or scratched out, by whom Julia could not imagine. She relayed what she had read to Flame.

"Sounds like the runes are in English," Flame noted, trying unsuccessfully to kick dirt from one of the covered runes, instead falling unceremoniously on her tail. Picking herself back up onto her hind paws, she added, "I wonder who 'they' are and where they came from."

"It's probably just a legend, Flame," Julia told her. She felt uneasy. Something about being in this room made her feel like she was stepping on something sacred, that she was trespassing. Behind that thought, there was also another indiscernible emotion tugging at her, and she felt like she was forgetting something important. The desire to leave tugged at her. "C'mon, let's try to find a way out of here."

"Fine," replied her Pokémon. Her voice was casual enough, but now that her initial excitement had faded, a tone of fear could be heard and she seemed to duck her head and glance from side to side nervously. It didn't take long for Julia to find a large tile in the top-left corner of the room that rose up from the floor about five centimetres, so she pointed it out to Flame. They approached it, then, remembering the previous fall they had had, Julia tapped it lightly with her toe. The tile gave way easily and, as expected, the tile beside it that Julia and Flame both stood on dropped to another floor beneath it.

The thud of the tile's and their fall echoed loudly through the hallway they were now sprawled in. "Owowowow..." Flame whimpered, rising unsteadily to her hind paws and teetering back and forth. "You okay, Julia?" Julia leaned against a wall as she pulled herself to her feet, tears in her eyes. That hurt!

"You two! What the fuck are you doing?!" They turned to see a man speed-walk towards them, fuming. "Did you touch that Helix Fossil mural in the room above?!"

"Erm, yes," Julia told him awkwardly. "Actually, Flame here solved it." She pointed at Flame, but the man didn't take his furious eyes off her.

"Don't you try to lay the blame on your Pokémon! Do you know what you could have done? You could have broken the slides, or worse! Did you not read the clear sign in the entrance not to damage the ruins? Or are you such a little kid that - "

"The room above us has Unown runes in it!" Julia interrupted, stunning the man into silence. "They - they say something about somebody coming from somewhere..." Despite that sounding very stupid, the man suddenly seemed intrigued.

"What exactly does it say?" he asked excitedly.

"I can't remember exactly, but if you fall through a hole in the top floor, then you - "

"Perfect, that's all I need to know!" he exclaimed. "Your childish and reckless actions may have caused a breakthrough in understanding the meaning of the ruins! Thank you so much, er...?"

"That's Julia and I'm Flame," Flame told him immediately, then ducked away from Julia, cringing. That was twice that Flame had introduced them! Did she think that she was the human and Julia the Pokémon? The man seemed to understand well enough, though.

"Thank you, Flame, and your Trainer (didn't quite catch your name, kid)! If there's anything that you need, feel free to ask me!" Then, not noticing Julia's increasingly annoyed expression, scurried off down the dark hall and vanished.

"Mind telling us the way out?" Julia called out after him, but he had gone. She sighed then walked in his general direction. Flame followed, but lagged, increasingly falling behind. She kept stopping or slowing down to stare at the walls, quietly reading any footprint runes in a soft growl. On top of making very little progress down the dark halls, Julia's nagging sense of missing a vital clue about this place returned, as well as the feeling of being watched.

"Come on, Flame," she hissed, "let's just try to get out of here as quickly as we can!" Flame continued to ignore her until she suddenly stopped, her ears perked up.

"Hey, Julia... Do you hear that?" Perhaps it was something in the way Flame said that, but Julia's fear increased and she tried listening. For a moment, she heard nothing, except for the distant sound of tourists deeper in the tunnels. Then she heard it. It was a faint buzzing sound, almost like a Beedrill, but it was increasing in volume. On top of that, it sounded like many somethings were causing it. Tiny little hums caused by dozens upon dozens of somethings. Maybe even hundreds. The humming grew louder.

"R-run!" Julia yelled, taking a few steps backwards. Flame seemed transfixed, however; staring into the black depths of the hallway.

"Please!" she begged, picking up pace and bumping into a pillar. The Quilava still wasn't moving. Julia began to approach her, groping in her pocket for Flame's PokéBall, when a wave of drowsiness swept over her, nearly knocking her over. _What is this? I feel really dizzy all of a sudden..._ Another wave spread over her, then her vision went black. Panic and confusion rose in her when a bright light interrupted the black. And she found herself staring at hundreds of grey, oddly shaped Pokémon, each with one wide, unblinking eye. A horde of Unown!

The vision lasted for only a moment, and she was suddenly back in the dark hallway, half-collapsed against the pillar. _What...what was that?!_

But when the buzzing was almost on top of them, Julia suddenly understood. Without saying a word, she grabbed Flame and dashed away.

"Julia! Wh-what's going on?" squealed Flame, staring at Julia nervously with her wide red eyes. Julia hardly heard her, though she was breathing too hard to respond anyways. Her eyes were trained forward and the only thing she allowed herself to think about was what was closing in on them from behind. Her foot caught on a loose floor tile and she pitched forward, shielding Flame with her arms as she crashed to the floor. She whipped her head around and finally saw them.

The Unown's humming of psychic energy threatened to deafen her and they swirled around too madly for the eye to follow. Within seconds, they were completely surrounded by the small grey bodies that pressed in. She could feel the Quilava tremble against her. _This can't be how it ends! _Julia thought desperately._ Help - ! _

Although the voice that commanded it was drowned out, the blast roared above the humming noise then sounded again. Julia looked up and saw the Unown flying backwards every time the Signal Beam attack was fired. Even those who weren't hit began to flee until they were finally all gone.

Julia shook, breathing hard, then turned to see who their saviour was. A violet-haired boy, not much older than Julia, pumped his fist triumphantly. In front of him stood an Ariados, glaring fiercely in the direction the Unown had fled.

"You okay?" asked the boy, coming over to offer a hand out to Julia. She cautiously took it, her other arm tightly around Flame's still-quivering body.

"Thanks to you, yeah," Julia replied, standing shakily. She got the sinking feeling that those Unown would make reappearances in her nightmares.

"I've been here a few times, but I've never seen or even heard of the Unown forming a swarm like that to attack someone," he said, grinning mildly. "You must've really pissed them off!"

"Well, that's the thing! We didn't do anything!" Julia protested. "Besides uncovering some room above with some runes in it..."

"That'll probably do it!" He slapped a hand on her shoulder, laughing. "Oh, by the way, my name's Bugsy and I'm the Azalea town Gym Leader. You can repay this favour by challenging me!" He returned his Ariados then, shooting another grin at Julia, dashed away. She stared after him in confusion. That kid was a Gym Leader?

"Uh, Julia?" Julia glanced down at Flame, whose trembling had subsided a bit, though her expression remained fearful. "Do you mind if we get out of here? Those Unown really surprised me, and I'm still kinda shaken up." Was she trying to hide the fact that she got scared?

"I was thinking the same thing, Flame." Julia let out a short laugh to relieve her tension a little bit. "Let's go."

"No way! Are you saying that you had a vision of the Unown before they attacked?!"

The two sat on Julia's bed in the Pokémon Centre overnight room, where Julia had finally decided to tell Flame about her unexpected vision in the ruins. Although it had been very vivid, it was such an odd thing to have happened that she was beginning to doubt she saw it herself now.

"I - yeah, I guess so," Julia replied. "It's really weird. I don't really know what to make of it yet." Flame looked thoughtful from where she lay on the orange bedcovers. Her hind paws were tucked neatly at her side and her front paws dangled off the edge of the bed.

"Maybe that means you're a psychic type Pokémon, like Unown," she suggested.

"Again with the 'what Pokémon I am' business? Flame, you know I'm not - "

"Or maybe like Gardevoir! An orange-haired Gardevoir! Imagine that!" Julia sighed, trying to hide her smile. Flame obviously wasn't going to be stopped from speculating about this by Julia.

"Or - even better - what if I were a human?" Flame sat up straight, then mimicked Julia's seating position, balancing on her rear and splaying her hind legs out in front of her. She wobbled about for a moment, then fell over onto her back. Julia giggled.

"Honestly, Flame!" For a few minutes after that, she got ready for bed, brushing her teeth and changing into her pyjamas. Then she turned off the lights and pulled away the blanket to get in. Flame watched from the floor, where she sat on her haunches.

"Erm, Julia," she began awkwardly, "would you mind if I slept in the bed again?" The girl frowned, not wanting to deny Flame, but at the same time wanting a good night's rest for herself. Last night, Flame's body heat was too much for her. _But what can you expect from a Pokémon named Flame? _

"Only if you stay on top of the covers," Julia finally gave in. "Otherwise, you'd heat up the bed too much." That seemed to be enough for Flame, as she hopped up on the bed and curled up between the wall and Julia's legs, casting a quick, grateful glance at her.

Julia closed her eyes and turned onto her side, and nearly fell asleep, when she heard Flame squeak, "Hey, are you still awake?"

"Yeah," she replied softly.

"Even though we got chased out by the Unown, can we go back to the ruins again sometime? There's still so many questions I have about that place!"

"...alright, Flame."

Water dripped from the jagged rock ceiling when Julia opened her eyes into a dream. The cave was very dim, but something in the distance was shining. She crept through the cave, following the path of light. Something very powerful and important was at the end. Something that she needed to retrieve. Was it the same thing that she had been searching for? Or were there many different ones?

The light came closer, and Julia was now able to make out every detail within the cave, every jagged point. Just around the next bend, she would be able to reach it. She reached an arm out. Something jolted her back, slamming her into a rock wall behind her. When she opened her eyes again, the cave was replaced by the ceiling. Julia had woken up, back in her room. Daylight shone in through the window and she realized it was morning. Her head throbbed, as though she really had hit her head against a wall. _Why do I keep having these dreams? _she wondered as she stood up and stretched_. What could they mean?_


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello again! Welcome to chapter 6! I am the best/worst procrastinator ever! X,D**

**As always, any writing or story suggestions are always appreciated, and I would love to have my story reviewed - anything helps!**

**Enjoy and thanks for reading! ;D**

* * *

"RISE AND SHINE! It's MORNING!"

Julia put her paws over her ears in an attempt to block out the loud noise. Loudred stood over her and Flame, hands on his waist.

"Hey, YOU TWO! Remember me from last night?" he roared. "I'm Loudred! And I was GRACIOUS enough to come WAKE you! If I hadn't been here to wake you up, you would have been LATE! And if you're LATE, you might make Guildmaster Wigglytuff lose his TEMPER! If that were to happen..." He turned away, shuddering. "That would NOT be a pretty sight!

"Ugh...thank you, Loudred," Flame groaned from his bed, looking as though he had given up on life. Frankly, that was close to how Julia felt. Loudred's little wake-up call had started a pounding headache and her ears were ringing. Luckily, that was the end of his yelling and he marched out of the room.

"'Morning, Julia..." Flame greeted blearily, getting up with slight difficulty. Julia nodded to him, almost certain that he had completely missed the gesture, then followed him out into the meeting area. Here, it seemed that the other Pokémon of the Guild had gathered and Chatot stood at the front of the room, looking very unimpressed.

"Hey, rookies! You're LATE!" called out Loudred from the crowd. Everyone within a three-metre radius ducked away from him. This act only seemed to upset Chatot more.

"Hush!" he snapped at Loudred. "Your voice is ridiculously loud!" Loudred did not respond to that, and instead turned away slightly. Chatot then directed his attention toward Flame and Julia. "However, he is correct!" he chastised, flapping his wings in agitation. "Make this time the first - and the last - time that you are late, got it?"

"Yes, Chatot, sir!" Flame called out, looking nervously to Julia.

"Now, then," Chatot continued, "before we continue with the morning address and cheer, I would like to introduce these two new recruits." Everyone turned to look at Flame and Julia, and Julia felt suddenly self-conscious with all of these Pokémon looking at her. "These are Julia and Flame, everyone. As of yesterday, they are trainees of the Guild, so treat them kindly!" Although his words were gentle, his execution of them was sharp, a direct order rather than a request.

He raised his head higher, briefly checking the Guild members assembled, then called out before anyone could greet Flame or Julia, "Alright! Everyone seems to be present. Let us conduct our morning address!" Perhaps it was solely due to him being a Chatot, but his voice had a lilt to it, causing him to sound slightly whimsical.

"Guildmaster! The Guild is in full attendance!" he sang, turning to look at the doors that led to the Guildmaster's office. Within a moment, they burst open, and Guildmaster Wigglytuff waddled out, his green eyes wide open. Chatot tilted his head to the side slightly, almost as if listening to something, then, smiling, said, "Thank you, Guildmaster! Now please address the crew!"

When Chatot fell silent, Wigglytuff did not speak right away, nor did he ever. All that could be heard coming from him was a light snore.

"Would you look at that!" one of the Guild members whispered. "Guildmaster Wigglytuff never ceases to amaze me!"

"Yup, you got that right," came another whisper.

"Looks like he's fast asleep."

"Eek! His eyes are wide open, though!"

Chatot's expression did not falter, but an eye twitched before he continued, "Thank you, sir! We all value your...words of wisdom!" He faced the crew and addressed them. "All right, Pokémon! Let's all take our Guildmaster's words of wisdom to heart! Now for the morning cheer!"

As one, all of the students chanted, "A ONE, A TWO...A ONE-TWO-THREE! ONE! DON'T SHIRK WORK! TWO! RUN AWAY AND PAY! THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" Julia had tried to follow along, but was too distracted by the implications of 'run away and pay' to continue. If she learned where she came from and left the Guild, would that count as running away?

"Okay, Pokémon!" Chatot sang. "Let's get to work!"

"HOORAY!" the Guild called out, then the Pokémon dispersed, heading to their respective stations. Wigglytuff, presumably still sleep-walking, went back to his room and closed the doors behind him. Flame's eyes were wide with excitement.

"This is so amazing!" he cried. "I feel like I already belong here!" Julia could argue that, but she kept silent about it. She didn't want to dampen his enthusiasm.

"You two! Over here!" Chatot's voice sounded from the front of the room, and Julia and Flame quickly rushed over. It seemed like Loudred had been wrong about Wigglytuff this morning; while the Guildmaster seemed to be very docile and friendly, as she observed last night, Chatot seemed to have two emotions - a brisk, cheerful one, and a fairly terrifying temper. Julia did not want to be on the receiving end of the latter, so she decided to follow all of his instructions as best she could and try not to make him angry.

Chatot led them up the ladder and out of the crew room. Although they had been here the night before, Julia had not had the chance to look around. Now, she saw that the grass-covered middle floor had no other exits to other rooms and, on the walls on either side of the ladders, were two bulletin boards with many posters and scraps of paper pinned to them.

"Come here, if you'd please!" called Chatot. Flame and Julia joined him by where he stood beside one of the boards. "This here is the job bulletin board," he explained, "where Pokémon post requests, often for help in finding lost items or getting a friend safely out of a Mystery Dungeon." The phrase 'Mystery Dungeon' rang a bell for Julia, but she couldn't seem to recall where she heard it before. _Oh, that's right! _she realized._ Flame mentioned them last night - he said that Beach Cave was a Mystery Dungeon. But I still don't know what that means..._

"A Mystery Dungeon, like the Beach Cave, is a cave or forest or someplace like that that always changes its paths every time you visit it," Flame told her, seeming to clue in to her confusion. "In other words, it's always changing, so it's impossible to map and much more dangerous to travel through than any other path."

"Correct!" Chatot chimed. "Lately, more and more locations are turning into Mystery Dungeons, due to a disrupt in the flow of time." He lowered his voice and added ominously, "This disrupt in time is also causing many Pokémon to do bad things, so there has been an increase in danger to citizens of Treasure Town and even those who live farther away." Julia nodded along, and despite not following too well, the fur on the back of her neck rose and she felt cold. _As weird as it sounds, it seems to be a really big problem!_

"Thus, Pokémon are relying on the Guild and all the Guild's members more than ever to do a good job helping out and keep everyone safe." He smiled pleasantly before continuing, "You should come to this job board every day and pick a task to do. Since you're still new to the Guild, I'll pick an easy task for you to do!" He turned his attention to the board and rifled through the notices for a while before pulling one off with a talon.

"This ought to do. 'My brother went off exploring on his own through Drenched Bluff. I want to go after him, but I might need backup. Please help!'" Chatot handed the paper to Flame, who stowed it away in his bag. "I doubt that you will have much difficulty with this task. So make sure - "

"Chatot!"

Flame and Julia turned to see Wigglytuff climb up the ladder and walk over to Chatot.

"Yes, Guildmaster? Is there something I can help you with?" Chatot asked pleasantly.

"I keep telling you not to call me that!" Wigglytuff huffed at him, folding his arms. "I thought we were on close enough terms for you to call me by my name?" Although he was obviously trying very hard to look angry, his expression made him look more mischievous than anything.

"Guildmaster, although we are friends, I must set a good example for the students." Chatot's voice was firm and he watched Wigglytuff with a look of infinite patience. "Now, what is it that you wanted?"

"Well, I just noticed that my supply of Perfect Apples is running a bit low, so if you wouldn't mind sending out some students to fetch some more, that would be great!" He smiled widely, as though he had not gotten cross at all.

"Of course, Guildmaster! I will send off Sunflora and Loudred to Apple Woods!" Chatot faced Julia and Flame again and flapped his wings. "And you two! Off to work!"

Julia took that as a dismissal and turned away, beginning to climb up the ladder. Flame paused for a moment, looking from Chatot to Wigglytuff, then followed her.

"Y'know," Flame began as he climbed, "Loudred mentioned that Wigglytuff has a big temper, but he really doesn't seem like the kind of Pokémon who would get mad easily, does he?"

"I was thinking about that recently, too," Julia agreed, helping Flame climb out of the ladder tunnel. The ladder tunnels were neither tight nor very long, but they went straight up, and Julia had noticed that both she and Flame seemed to have some difficulty getting out of them; Flame especially, due to his smaller arms. "Wigglytuff seems very friendly and is always so happy!"

"Yeah, well..." Flame lowered his voice a little bit. "I heard from the Kecleon brothers in Treasure Town that he's the toughest Pokémon in the region! And that he's actually an accomplished explorer! I was afraid that he would be really harsh and strict when I heard that!"

"Nope, Wigglytuff is farther from strict than we are from the moon!" Julia agreed. They began walking down the stairs from the Guild. "But he has Chatot to be that for him!"

Flame grinned at her, then they both burst into laughter.

It didn't take a very long time to get to Drenched Bluff, but both Flame and Julia were breathing hard by the time they reached it.

"Don't tell me we have to get through that Mystery Dungeon now!" Flame panted. "And this is one of the nearest dungeons, too! There are other dungeons even further away on my Treasure map!" Julia sighed and grinned painfully at him.

"Think of it this way - at least we don't have to go to any of those today."

"Excuse me! Are you two explorers?" The two turned to face a tiny Spearow near the cave's entrance, who had an expression of deep concern on his face. It was Flame who answered him.

"Uh, yeah, we are." He pulled out the notice from his bag and scrutinized it again. Julia peered over his shoulder to read the note but found, to her shock, that the entire thing was written in another language. _I suppose I can only speak Pokémon, not read it,_ she realized glumly.

"Right! Spearow, you're our client, aren't you?" Flame finally asked, stowing away the note.

"Yes," Spearow replied, "so we need to hurry! Lucky could be seriously hurt by now, or worse, knowing his luck."

Not questioning the mention of 'Lucky,' Flame nodded and led the way into the cave. Drenched bluff was similar to Beach Cave, but it was more open and the ground was of stone rather than sand. Julia somehow ended up leading again, perhaps due to her electrical capabilities, which would serve them well in a cave full of water type Pokémon. Flame took up the rear, to protect Spearow from unexpected attacks from behind.

"So, who is this 'Lucky?'" Julia finally asked when her curiousity overflowed. "Lucky is my little brother," Spearow explained, "and he's always getting us into trouble, no matter what he does. Of course, I still adore him, but honestly!"

Julia nodded in silent acknowledgement. Now she wanted to ask Flame about the writing, but she knew it would be rude to immediately talk with her partner after Spearow had answered her question. Besides, explaining would probably take showing Julia the notice again, which would expose Spearow to attacks. So they continued in silence, defeating any wild Pokémon they came across and making their way deeper into the cave.

The passage suddenly widened, and the three found themselves in a wide cavern. It was much like the rest of the cave and relatively empty, save for a young Riolu sitting atop a boulder. The said Riolu's eyes widened when the Pokémon entered the cave and he hopped off the boulder.

"Brother!" he cried out, running at Spearow and toppling him over in a crushing hug. Flame and Julia stepped away from the little tangle, exchanging confused glances. _This_ was Spearow's brother?

"Lucky, get off me! You'll crush me!" protested Spearow, but Lucky completely disregarded his plea.

"What took you guys so long, Perry?" woofed Lucky. "I've gotten so bored alone here! And I found treasure, too!"

"Oh, really?" Perry scoffed, struggling on the ground to free himself. "Show me, then." Lucky got off Perry, but quickly grabbed his wing and dragged the poor Spearow away to the boulder he had been sitting on. Cautiously, Flame and Julia followed. _Lucky doesn't look like he needed rescuing, _she grumbled to herself._ Over an hour of boredom wandering through that cave, and it was for nothing!_

Lucky seemed to be showing a claw of some sort to his 'brother' with great gusto and enthusiasm. By the looks of it, Perry was used to Lucky's antics, but was frustrated nonetheless.

Flame idled awkwardly for a moment before asking, "So, do you want us to escort you out now?"

"That would be great!" squeaked Lucky, his eyes shining. "An escort, by a real exploration team! Hey, Perry, we should do that!"

"What?"

"Join Wigglytuff's Guild! Then we can become explorers, too!"

"Mom said when we're older."

"Let's run away from home, then!"

It was clear that Flame was running out of patience with these two. After allowing them to argue for another minute, he pulled out his and Julia's Explorer Badges and tossed Julia's to her. Catching it, she gave Flame a quizzical look, but he didn't see it. Instead, he held his badge out at Perry and Lucky. It glowed pink for a moment, then Perry vanished. Lucky hardly managed to squeak out his distress before he vanished too. Now Flame looked at his partner and laughed.

"You should see the look on your face! Ha ha ha!" He came over to her, pointing to her badge. "Our badges can be used to transport people away to the dungeon entrance, like an Abra's Teleport move. I think that a psychic type Pokémon made these work that way, but I don't really know how." He shrugged, then added, "So we can use them to escape any dungeon if we faint or if we do manage to get through, like now!"

He demonstrated by holding his badge towards himself, vanishing. Julia stared at the spot where he had been a second ago, then quickly attempted it on herself. Her badge glowed and suddenly, she was outside. Flame, who stood next to her, grinned.

"There you have it!" he said brightly. The ground below Julia felt like it was spinning and she stumbled dizzily into Flame, who caught her immediately. "Woah, are you okay there?!" he yelped, tightening his grip on her shoulders.

His paws were warm and she could feel the heat from his body radiating outwards. A bizarre wish that they would be closer came to Julia and she shook her head, trying to remove it from her mind. Flame took a step away from her embarrassedly, turning slightly red in the face, and Julia realized with a start that she had been blushing.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit dizzy," she quickly muttered. Still looking nervous, Flame nodded slowly and they began their reluctant return to the Guild.

"Good work, you two!" Chatot praised, his melodic voice half an octave higher than usual. "I expect that later today, your client will come in to reward you for a job well done!"

Flame and Julia had met Chatot by the job notice board in the Guild. The awkwardness between them had dissipated the moment they stepped into the Wigglytuff tent. Being back was too big a relief for them to stay distanced from one another.

"We get a reward?" Flame looked excitedly at Julia. "That's awesome!"

Just then, Loudred and a Sunflora climbed down the ladder with bulging bags filled with, as Julia suspected, apples. Sunflora looked especially furious at her partner, who also appeared to be cross.

"Sunflora, Loudred! What took you buffoons so long?!" snapped Chatot, flapping his wings in annoyance.

"I'm sorry, Chatot," Sunflora huffed. "If Loudred wasn't acting like the total moron that he is, we would have been perfectly on time!"

"Oh, YEAH?!" yelled Loudred. "YOU'RE the one who was being a shit-for-brains! It's your fault that we were held up by that Scizor!"

"_Really?_ And how is that?"

"YOU wanted to go further into the woods because you HEARD that there was a strong Pokémon. I said, 'NO, we already HAVE the apples, so let's just go BACK,' but you were all - "

"That's quite enough!" shrilled Chatot. "Both of you, take the Perfect Apples down to Wigglytuff then report back here at once!"

"Yes, sir!" they both yelped, and vanished down the other ladder, still bickering. Chatot covered his face with his wing, muttering insults, then beamed again at Julia and Flame. "Very good work, Team Eleblaze!" he chirruped. "Now, feel free to talk with the other members while I sort out...those two." Again, Julia was unnerved by his sudden change in character, but Flame beckoned to her as he walked towards the centre of the room, so she followed. They approached Bidoof, who seemed to be on his own.

"Golly, if it isn't the two new recruits!" he addressed. "Sure is a pleasure to meet you both! If I remember correctly, your names are Flame and...?"

"Julia," Flame finished. He seemed to have a habit of preferring to introduce Julia rather than letting her speak on her own, which slightly irked her. Instead of saying so, though, she just nodded her head.

"Gee, I'm glad you two joined. Before you, I was the newest member, and I always felt like I couldn't do anything right. Plus, I had a lot of pressure from Chatot. But hopefully, the attention will be off me now!" Julia cocked her head slightly, not sure whether she should take that as an insult or let it slide.

"Hey hey hey! Don't be rude, Bidoof!" A Corphish scuttled over, crossly glaring at Bidoof. "Hello, Flame and Julia! I'm Corphish, and it's very nice to make your acquaintances."

"Nice to meet you, too," Julia responded, smiling. The afternoon seemed to last forever. A small lunch for any Guild members not out exploring was prepared by a Chimecho, and Flame realized, to his horror, that meat was never served.

"But - but that's not fair!" he wailed. "How am I supposed to survive on leaves and berries alone?!"

Chimecho turned her head away and replied in a delicate, chiming voice, "If you're really so desperate for the blood of other Pokémon, you could just hunt on an expedition. However..." Her gaze slide over to Julia. "...there is a chance that that would disgust your partner horribly."

"Ah..." Flame turned to Julia, a pleading look in his half-open eyes. "Would you mind at all, Julia, if I were to hunt from time to time?"

"I guess not," Julia sighed, "as long as you do it away from me." She didn't know what it was, but she did feel like it was gross to eat another Pokémon, and she certainly never wanted to see one be killed then eaten. Flame looked to the floor, then gave in.

"Fine. I don't need meat that badly. I'll just eat grass or whatever you guys usually eat." Chimecho nodded, apparently satisfied with his response. Even though Flame looked miserable, Julia felt a guilty sort of relief. She couldn't imagine him as a predator, anyways. The thought of him stalking a Rattata in the grass nearly made her laugh out loud.

It was nearly dusk when Perry and Lucky arrived at the Guild. Julia had been watching Flame deal with his fur in an almost Meowth-like manner and was contemplating whether or not she should attempt to clean her own fur the same way when an excited voice drifted down the ladder. Lucky stopped at the foot of the ladder, staring around with wide, shiny eyes, before noticing Julia and Flame sitting in front of the job notice board.

"Yoo-hoo! You guys! It's me, Lucky!" Behind the Riolu, Perry half-flew and half-fell down the ladder, trying to regain composure as he landed. Pausing in his grooming, Flame stood and beamed at the boys.

"Hi again, Lucky, Perry!" Flame called out. "What are you two doing here?"

"We've come to give you a reward for rescuing Lucky," Perry explained. He awkwardly hopped over to Flame and Julia, then dropped what he was carrying. It was a small, bulky brown sac, and Perry quickly added, "I'm giving you guys 200 Poké as a reward, okay?"

"Wow, that much?!" Flame asked, bewildered. "Thank you so much, Perry!" Perry nodded at him, then flew over to Lucky, who was dashing through the room, talking briefly to one Guild member, then to another, then another. The Spearow firmly clamped down on Lucky's tail and pulled his wildly protesting brother away to the ladder, forcing him through exertion of pain upon his tail to climb up the ladder.

"See ya round, Flame! Bye, uh, Pikachu!" he yelled at them before disappearing above.

"Why does it seem like nobody can remember my name?" Julia growled in frustration.

"Well, Julia isn't exactly a standard name - here, at least," Flame pointed out. "Wherever you came from, maybe it is normal. Anyways, can you believe how much money Perry gave us? We're rich!"

"Not quite, Flame," contradicted Chatot as he came up from behind them. "According to Guild rules, you only keep one-tenth of whatever you earn. The rest goes to Guildmaster Wigglytuff and myself."

"What? But - "

"Sorry, Flame. Guild rules," insisted Chatot. Reluctantly, Flame pulled 20 Poké from the sac and put it in his own bag. Chatot took the sac in his claw and flew away back down the ladder.

"Man, this bites! We totally deserved that money!" Flame was so agitated that flames began sputtering out his back.

"It's Guild rules, I guess," Julia pointed out. "Besides, we get to train here for free otherwise." Flame's anger subsided and he sighed.

"You're right. There's no point in getting mad over it."

"Dinnertime!" chimed Chimecho, flying up through the lower ladder tunnel. Flame exchanged a grin with Julia and they quickly ran over to the ladder.


	7. Chapter 7

**So, here's the chapter I was too lazy to upload last week. That, my friends, is a special kind of lazy. My inspiration pool is currently being subjected to a blazing drought, so please excuse me for being a crappy and slow writer. Grr, if only this story was already written and I could be working on the sequel already! Must...resist...**

**=^_^= Well, anyways, enjoy the chapter! As usual, critiques and ideas are always very appreciated and make me feel like what I am doing is not for naught!...though that's very likely what this is for. TvT**

* * *

"Hey! Julia! Wait!"

Julia turned to look in the direction of the voice. She and Flame had been nearing the city gates, preparing to leave Violet city for Azalea town, a good ways south of their current location. However, a man dressed in a white lab coat ran frantically towards them now, a PokéBall in his hand.

"Man, I'm so glad I caught you before you left!" he panted, resting his hands on his knees. "Professor Elm wanted me to give this to you." He held out the PokéBall, and Julia paused before taking it. What did she have to be cautious about? Did she think there was a giant Ekans in there?

But when Julia let the Pokémon out, Flame could clearly see that there was no giant Ekans. Before her stood a Ponyta, a young, cream-furred stallion that kept stepping on the spot. Flame thought he looked very antsy.

"This Ponyta is for me?" Julia asked incredulously. "But why...?"

"Oh, right! The prof. also wanted me to give you this note." The aide handed her a note in an envelope. "Supposedly, it explains everything inside."

"Alright. Tell him thanks for me, then," Julia told him. "Does he - " She gestured to the Ponyta. " - have a name?"

"No, a nickname is for you to give. I'd best get going - wait, is that a Quilava? How did you get one?"

Flame could see the anxiety in Julia's eyes and figured her temporary Trainer was trying to work out whether it was better to lie or tell the truth. Narrowing her eyes at the aide - there was a chance that he might be an imposter trying to take Flame back - Flame stepped in front of Julia.

"My previous Trainer abandoned me," Flame spoke up, "so Julia decided to take care of me instead." She looked up, relieved to see Julia's smile. _A good enough fib,_ she figured.

"That's very considerate of you," the aide beamed. "Now then, see you later!" He let a Pidgeot out of its PokéBall and, getting on its back, commanded, "Use Fly to New Bark town!" The Pidgeot beat its powerful wings and lifted off, vanishing over the tree tops in the distance. Julia let out a big sigh.

"Thanks for saving me an explanation. I really didn't know what to tell him." Then she looked at Ponyta with a slight frown. It looked like she didn't quite know what to do with it. Why had Elm chosen to give her a fire type, anyways? Now Julia had two.

_Or rather, one, _Flame remembered._ I'm not her Pokémon._

"So, uh, nice to meet you, Ponyta," Julia began carefully, the corners of her mouth turning up again. Ponyta seemed to give her a long look before responding.

"A pleasure. You may call me Sir Majestic Tail," he spoke with a flick of said majestic tail. Appearing unsure what to make of such a name, Julia paused again. Flame figured, with an eye roll, that she had better fill in for her again.

"I'm Flame, and this is Julia," Flame said, looking at Julia out of the corner of her eye. Julia did not seem to be as happy about being introduced as Flame had expected her to be. _I get how she'd be upset before, when I introduced her to a human, but won't less be lost in translation if I'm the one telling another Pokémon?_

"Indeed," snorted Sir Majestic Tail, raising his head, which hardly came above the top of Julia's head. Despite this, he was tall for a Ponyta, and Flame suddenly felt intimidated in more ways than one. _What if Julia replaces me with him?!_

"Um, we're headed out to Azalea town," Julia explained, "so if you'd just follow - "

"My Lady Julia, a charming colt such as myself was born to be ridden," insisted Sir Majestic Tail, bowing his head. He disgusted Flame.

"Ah, okay..." Julia picked up Flame, then, a hand on his back, lifted herself up. She used too much power in the jump, however, and she gracelessly swung right off his other flank and onto the ground. Flame had managed to jump off and adjusted herself on his back. Smiling at Julia in encouragement, Flame gestured with her paw for Julia to come sit. Even as she did, she tried not to wince. Sir Majestic Tail's fur chafed against her, and her legs were splayed too far away from each other to let her be even a little comfortable.

Picking herself up off the ground slowly and cringing, Julia led Sir Majestic Tail out of the city, probably to find something she could boost herself up with, or maybe just to get away from the mocking public eye. After the short ride into the route, Flame was fairly certain that she never wanted to ride a Ponyta again.

Julia found a decent-sized rock and clambered onto his back behind Flame, using it as a step-stool. When Flame glanced back at Julia, she was surprised that she looked thrilled rather than uncomfortable. Although Sir Majestic Tail seemed a bit too small to be able to properly carry them both, he began walking forwards easily. Julia fumbled around then put her hands on the sides of his neck, forming a sort of barrier around Flame with her arms.

"Wow, isn't this great, Flame?" she asked excitedly, beaming.

"Yeah, I guess."

Flame was in a terrible position for view. That irritated her. She at least wanted to be able to see where they were going. Sir Majestic Tail kept up a steady trot for a few minutes, his neck flames in Flame's face so much that she found herself leaning to the side a bit. Even though her skin was fireproof, she still didn't like being constantly bombarded with heat.

"Hey, nice Ponyta! Want to show me what he can do in battle?"

Straining to see the Trainer who had spoken, Flame put her paws on Julia's arm and pulled herself up to her hind paws. A boy, who looked a bit younger than -

Her hind legs collapsed on her, much to her frustration. _Why can't I just be a human? Then I'd be able to see everything around me without having to worry if my legs would hold up my weight!_

Julia got off Sir Majestic Tail's back, then pulled Flame off, too. The other Trainer let a Furret out of a PokéBall who then faced Sir Majestic Tail.

"Hey, I want to battle the guy!" Flame protested, squirming.

"He challenged Sir Majestic Tail to battle," Julia whispered to her. "It would be rude for you to battle."

Sir Majestic Tail turned his head, as if in agreement, then discreetly sneered at Flame. Her eyes widened and she seethed at him. _That bastard! How dare he?! I'm the main Pokémon here!_

"Use Stomp," Julia instructed when the battle began. With as much flair as possible, Sir Majestic Tail lifted his hoof right up and slammed it down on Furret when it tried to Quick Attack. Flame expected the poor thing to be completely smushed, but Furret quickly recovered from the blow, hopping back and awaiting its Trainer's instructions. Apparently having received some, it zigzagged back and forth before pummelling into Sir Majestic Tail with another Quick Attack.

"Now, use Ember!" Sir Majestic Tail shook off the attack like it was nothing and, rearing onto his hind legs, shot fiery-hot embers from who-knows-where at Furret. That attack finished it off, and its Trainer returned it to its Ball before sending out a Noctowl. Sir Majestic Tail also defeated this Pokémon quickly, and the opposing Trainer resignedly handed Julia some prize money. The Ponyta met eyes with Flame, shooting her a brilliant smile. _I hate him._

The day dragged on forever as they rode down the wide, tree-lined path. Sir Majestic Tail did his absolute best to show off and piss off Flame. Whatever douchebag superpowers he had, he utilized them well. Within a few hours, Flame was so angry that the fire spouts on her neck sputtered constantly until bursting into a true, blazing flame.

Night neared, the sky burnt red with the sun's dying rays, and it became obvious very quickly that they would have to sleep outside somewhere.

"That hollow space under the branches there would make for a most lovely resting place," Sir Majestic Tail suggested, his eyes gleaming. Flame laughed harshly at him.

"Your ass flames'll catch the whole woods on fire," she snapped, darkly glaring at him. Flame heard Julia gasp at Flame's dirty speech, but Sir Majestic Tail had an equally rude comeback.

"True, but your ass size far exceeds mine, so you pose a much greater risk." Flame's eyes welled up in angry tears.

"Well, you know what?" she began furiously, but Julia had had it.

"That's enough, both of you!" she yelled, getting off Sir Majestic Tail's back, grabbing Flame roughly by the scruff of her neck. "Please give us a moment, Sir Majestic Tail." Her voice was sharp, and he seemed to recognize that he was also in trouble, so he nodded, allowing her to return him to his PokéBall.

"Alright, Flame, what is your problem?" Julia snapped, setting Flame on the ground. Flame lifted herself as high as she could on her hind legs, but only managed to make herself half as tall as the human. Despite that shortcoming, she looked desperately up into Julia's eyes.

"He's been taunting me all day, Julia! Don't tell me you haven't noticed!" She sounded like a wailing brat but she didn't care. Flame just wanted Julia to understand. To her surprise, Julia's expression softened and she knelt down to look straight at Flame.

"I know, Flame," she sighed. "I was going to praise you for doing so well all day." Flame's eyes became wet and she wiped a paw against her face. "I'm sorry for not doing anything," Julia added.

"Why didn't you?" Flame whimpered, shaking slightly. "If you saw that I was so upset, why didn't you tell him to cut it out?"

"Neither of us know him too well yet," Julia reminded. "And I think that he might just take some getting used to. I'm sure you'll warm up to him eventually - uh, no pun intended."

Flame smiled sadly. "Yeah, maybe." In truth, she highly doubted that she could ever grow to like that self-obsessed Ponyta, but there wasn't much point in hating on him, either.

Julia straightened and made to let Sir Majestic Tail out of his PokéBall, but Flame quickly reached up and put a paw on Julia's hand.

"I actually did mean it when I said his tail would burn down the forest, Julia." The Trainer cracked a grin and nodded, then let the Pokémon with said tail out. He quickly bowed his head, as if expecting some kind of horrible punishment.

"Sir Majestic Tail," Julia addressed, "I formally ask you to stop tormenting Flame and try to get used to her." He flinched at the commanding tone, but when he looked up to see her playful grin, he relaxed and raised his head again.

"Of course, my Lady," he replied, "I will do my very best." He eyed Flame, who made sure to keep her expression neutral.

"Now that we've got that sorted out," continued Julia, "I do think it would be better if you stayed in your PokéBall overnight. I don't want to risk starting a fire."

"As if having not one, but two fire type Pokémon is not a risk in itself," pointed out Sir Majestic Tail, but he relented. "Whatever you say, my Lady." Julia put him into his PokéBall and put it into her bag, then led Flame to the sheltered are that Sir Majestic Tail had pointed out. She arranged her bag like a pillow and lay down, trying to make herself comfortable. Flame sat down beside her and curled up into a ball, whispering a good night to Julia before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

The desert swirled around Flame as she pushed on. The dream felt too real; the sand whipping across her face got into her eyes and stung her cheeks, the ground beneath her feet constantly slipping.

But she couldn't stop - whatever she was looking for was nearby. She could feel it resonating deep within her chest.

Something stopped her in her tracks. Before her were massive, swirling pits of quicksand. Flame took a small step back, the first time she had done so in any of her dreams. She knew that the only way to the glowing orb was through the quicksand pits, but terror flooded through her. _What if I get stuck, or suffocate? Or get trapped down there forever?_

The dream slid away like a Surskit upon a frozen lake and melted into another. Now she stood in a dull yellow cave, water dripping from the ceiling and down the walls.

_I don't want to be here! Take me home! _she wailed, but there was nobody around to hear her. She was completely alone._ I don't want to search for anything anymore! Help, please!_

"Flame!" Julia's voice echoed through the cavern and Flame looked around.

_Julia? Where are you? Help me!_

"Flame, I'm right here! Wake up!"

Flame's eyes opened to Julia's face right above hers. She yelped and tried to scramble away, but Julia rested a reassuring hand on her chest. Flame breathed hard, feeling the hand rise and fall with her. Her face reddened and she looked to the side. Why did Julia have to act so familiar? They had met only four days ago. She didn't know her that well yet.

Julia seemed to take the hint and backed away, sitting back on her heels.

"You were having a bad nightmare, Flame," she explained. "I'm sorry that I was all up in your face, but I was really worried about you." The Quilava looked into Julia's earnest blue eyes and nodded.

"It's okay, Julia," she assured. "It was just a bit of a shock, that's all."

"So..." Julia paused, frowning at her. "Do you mind telling me what your dream was about? You were shouting about searching for something?"

Flame blinked at her and was about to tell her about the recurring dreams, but clammed up at last second. Something in her didn't want Julia to know. It might freak her out that the dreams started on the day they first met.

"I think I was looking for someone," she lied. "I think Totodile or Chikorita - I mean, Chiki." Julia nodded at her. Something in her expression changed for a second, and Flame swore that she looked disappointed. _About what my dream was about, or Chiki?_ She quickly changed the topic.

"So, how about you? Did you have any dreams?"

"N - no," Julia stammered, "I didn't. Or maybe I did, but I don't remember. I didn't sleep very well." She gestured to the hard dirt below her. Flame narrowed her eyes. Julia wasn't telling the truth, either. But why did they need to lie to each other about their dreams?

The ride onwards was marginally more enjoyable. This time, instead of sitting in the front where she could see nothing, Flame sat behind Julia with her claws in the back of her blue shirt. It still hurt her legs and crotch to sit like this, but she didn't want to risk standing on Sir Majestic Tail's back and either hurting him, which she wouldn't mind all that much, or falling off and hurting herself, which she would mind very much. Now she was able to see all the rocks and shrubs and, of course, Trainers. An unspoken rule had been made between Sir Majestic Tail and Flame: whoever the Trainer stared at in bewilderment the most would battle. After all, it was one thing to see a Ponyta or a Quilava, but an entirely different thing to see a Ponyta being ridden by someone nearly taller than himself or a Quilava sitting on him with painfully splayed out legs.

It was nearly late afternoon when they finally chanced upon an Oran berry tree. In the moment she saw it, Flame realized how starving she was and was off Sir Majestic Tail and on a branch of the tree in a heartbeat. She grabbed off an Oran berry and munched on it gratefully. Julia got off Sir Majestic Tail and took a berry for herself, feeling it for softness before also eating. The berries were slightly overripe, so they were incredibly juicy. Flame tried very carefully not to spill any on her pelt. It would be an awful pain to wash off.

A Sentret dashed by, nearly causing Flame to drop her berry. Suddenly, some other instinct kicked into gear. Her ears pointed forwards and she jumped off the tree, crouching in the grass on all fours then moving downwind.

"Flame, what in Arceus' name are you doing?" Julia's voice came, but Flame chose to ignore it. The Sentret was very nearby now - Flame could almost taste it. It was probably faster than she was, but if she sprang up on it, she could catch it.

"Are you hunting?!"

The loud noise startled the Sentret and it pelted away - right at Flame. She grabbed it with her paws and bit its throat to kill it before hopping back and licking her lips. She checked her own fur and found, to her immense relief, that it was still clean.

"Gods, Flame! Are you kidding me?" Julia strode over at last and glared at her. "What the heck do you plan on doing with that poor Sentret now?"

"What else? I'm hungry."

Slapping her forehead, Julia muttered, "Honestly? I can't believe it!"

Flame shrugged and began to eat it, but gave Julia a sympathetic look. "If it grosses you out, you don't have to watch me. It's just...I've always eaten meat, so I'm not about to go vegetarian or anything."

Julia waved a hand. "I don't have anything against it, but..." She gave Flame a sorrowful look. "Sometimes, I forget that Pokémon could actually kill each other if they wanted to - even in a normal battle. It scares me more than anything."

Flame stood on her hind legs shakily and said, "Don't worry, Julia. I'm not going to die in battle, got it?" Julia stared at her, as if surprised that Flame had guessed what she was insinuating. "And, for that matter," Flame continued, "I won't let any Pokémon touch you, either."

"Y-yeah," Julia choked out, "okay." She stood and walked slowly back to the Oran berry tree. _What's up with her? _Flame wondered_. Is she still freaked out about the Sentret or about the possibility of me dying in battle?_

Shortly, the sound of crashing waves could be heard and one side of the route became an inlet, ocean waves crashing at the shore. Above them, standing on thick steel supports, was a metal bridge of sorts. The bridge confused Flame. Why was it so high up and why was it so reinforced?

Julia dismounted Sir Majestic Tail and ran over to a wooden dock, grinning out over the waves. Behind her, Flame half-jumped and half-tumbled off Sir Majestic Tail and followed. The air was salty and the dock slippery. Flame found herself fearfully clinging to the planks of the dock on all fours, but Sir Majestic Tail's whinnying laughter knocked her senses back into her. _If I want to be more like a human, I can't just walk on all fours!_

However, just to be on the safe side, she scuttled away from the dock and onto dry land. She stood on her hind paws and sighed. She wanted to be out there on the dock with Julia, who was poking at the water and waving to the Wingulls.

Something jolted Flame and she yelped, leaping around to see who had attacked her. A Mareep munched on grass for a moment, then gave her a cheeky glance.

"Hey! What was that for?" Flame asked, marching towards her. The Mareep giggled and hopped backwards, a bolt of lightning arcing from her fur at Flame. Flame tried to dodge, but not only was she too slow to evade lightning, she was also the tallest thing in the area. The attack didn't hit hard, hardly penetrating her spark-resistant fur, but it seemed like a sign of aggression.

"You look silly when you stand up like that," bleated Mareep, grinning. "Why would you want to hop around like a Buneary like that when you can just walk on all fours like a normal Quilava?"

Flame clenched her paws into fists. "I wanna be a human!" she proclaimed. "And I can walk on my hind legs, see?" She took a casual step forward, then another, and suddenly she was running - far too quickly. Finally she tripped over her own paws and crashed into the flower bed face-first.

Mareep burst into high-pitched laughter, her fluffy fur sparking as she did so. "Not so good after all, are you? For how long are you going to keep that up?"

Flame picked herself up, shaking her head, then hopped back onto her hind legs. _Maybe this is silly,_ she thought to herself_. I'll never be able to walk like a human_. She began to lower herself back onto her haunches when she heard Julia yell, "You can do it, Flame!" She whirled her head around and saw the Trainer give her a thumbs-up from the dock. A burst of determination filled her and she faced Mareep.

"I'll prove that I can do this in battle!" she declared, the flames on her back and lower back igniting.

"Even your fire doesn't work properly!" chuckled Mareep. Flame peered back at her rump and realized with a start that Mareep was right. Perhaps caused by her simmering anger the day before, the flames were not bursting out like they were supposed to, but rather simply burning, like a bonfire. _As if that's gonna stop me!_

Flame took a few steps forward as quickly as she could manage while retaining control and curled into a ball, rolling quickly at Mareep. With satisfaction, she felt the impact against her head of a successful Flame Wheel. She quickly unfurled and scratched Mareep with outstretched claws, sending her foe tumbling backwards into the steep side of a hill. A rock dislodged and hit Mareep on the head, and she narrowed her playful eyes. Righting herself, she shot a Thunderbolt attack at Flame. It hit her squarely and she collapsed, suddenly unable to move. _Paralysis!_ she thought in horror.

"C'mon, Flame! I believe in you!" Julia's cheerful voice worked like a catalyst. Flame forced herself to push her paws against the ground, her muscles screaming in agony.

"I can...do it..." Flame murmured, then, in one swift movement, stood up again. Without giving Mareep a moment to be shocked, she sent Embers at her, feeling the power behind even the basic attack. Mareep stumbled away, falling over on the ground.

A red and white blur flew in an arc over Flame's head and struck Mareep. Suddenly, Mareep turned into a red bolt and vanished into the item. Julia then ran over, grinning. Flame expected her to run for whatever she threw, but the girl scooped her up, squishing her in a hug.

"You did it, Flame!" she squeaked excitedly. "I'm so proud of you!" Flame's face burned under the praise, turning away slightly.

"It - it was nothing, Julia," she mumbled, but couldn't help but smile. Her Trainer had a certain energy that even made something as insignificant as the defeat of a Mareep a huge achievement.

_Not _my _Trainer_, she reminded herself sadly_. This is just a Trainer that happens to be taking care of me now._

Sir Majestic Tail trotted over and looked at the PokéBall on the ground that now replaced Mareep. Julia seemed to remember that she threw it and went over to pick it up, Flame still dangling in one of her arms.

"Well, now we have a third team member!" Julia told them gleefully. "I think I'll name her Fluffy!"

"How very...original," commented Sir Majestic Tail, raising a white eyebrow. Either Julia didn't notice the back-handed compliment or she didn't care, because she let her new Pokémon out. The newly-named Fluffy looked around in confusion, disoriented. Pulling out a purple spray bottle from her bag, Julia sprayed Fluffy's wounds. The Potion began working immediately, closing the scratch and erasing the burns.

"Welcome to the team, Fluffy!" Julia said. Fluffy replied to that by hitting her with a Thundershock attack.

"Wah!" yelped Flame and threw herself between Julia and Fluffy without hesitation, glaring at the Mareep. Worriedly turning to face the girl, she cried out, "Julia! Are you okay?!"

For a moment, Julia looked stunned, her hair sticking out all over the place, charged with static electricity. Then she shook her head, and replied casually, "Don't worry, Flame, I'm fine!"

Flame's jaw dropped. "Julia, how are you still standing?!"

"It was just a Thundershock. No big deal."

While Flame tried to work out why Julia seemed so nonchalant about being struck with an electric attack and, of course, why she wasn't dead, Fluffy took Julia's being okay as an invitation to hit her again, this time with Thunderbolt. At least, to this one Julia reacted reasonably. She was thrown back into a bush, where she lay for only long enough for Flame to run over to her fearfully. Julia pushed herself up, wincing, and stood unsteadily.

"Alright, Fluffy, that's enough," Julia sighed, returning her to her PokéBall. "Geez, she's a bit feisty, isn't she, Flame?"

"How are you alive?!" Flame squeaked in alarm, her red irises wide. "That attack Paralyzed me, and you say 'she's a bit feisty?!'"

Grinning, Julia shook her head. "Some people are just better at resisting certain attacks. It's not that uncommon, but I guess you'd never had heard of it. It's an evolutionary thing, I guess." Flame had absolutely no idea what she was going on about. _Evolutionary thing? Humans can evolve? But they're not Pokémon! Does that mean they can use attacks, too?!_

"That's correct. Some people are more closely tied to Pokémon." The voice seemed to come from nowhere until a boy appeared in front of them, quite literally. "People like us."

"Where did you - " Flame began panickedly, but he kept talking over her.

"And we seek to change the world. We seek those like us. You..." He held a hand out to Julia, giving her a crooked smile. "...you are just what we are seeking. Join us."


	8. Chapter 8

**Alright! Let's get this story rollin'! I have been doing a terrible job of keeping up with writing these Arceus-damned chapters; anything helps me get motivated, be it a review, a comment - heck, even getting flamed wouldn't bother me at this point! I just need a little bit of incentive to keep writing, or it's likely that my chapters will be uploaded late, with horribly rushed plotlines.**

**Once again, thank you all for taking the time out of your busy internet lives to read my fanfiction, and do enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

The cool autumn air ruffled the fur on Julia's face as she and Flame made their way down to Treasure Town. They had been given a special task today to pick up an order of new explorer badges that, supposedly, worked better. Julia didn't understand how the badges could possibly be better or why Chatot or Wigglytuff couldn't just come down themselves to get them. Were they tethered to the Guild or something?

Over the past few weeks, Julia and Flame had gotten used to life at the Guild. Although the morning wake-up call by Loudred and the judgemental glares from Chatot were far from pleasant, the routine of the day and the exploration missions began to feel normal and Julia could truthfully say that she was having a lot of fun. Flame had fallen into place as her best friend, and Bidoof often would accompany them on missions, trying desperately to act as a guide for them. Eventually, they befriended him as well. But given time, Julia figured that they very likely would become friends with everyone at the Guild. The Pokémon training there were all cheerful and kind, and it made Julia wonder about what was continually said of bad Pokémon being everywhere.

Treasure Town was, as always, bustling with activity. There were various shops set up on either side of the road, their colourful tents swaying slightly in the breeze. Across the small wooden bridge over a stream was the Kecleon Market run by two Kecleon brothers, a place where all sorts of items were sold, and where the badge order had come in.

"'Morning, Julia, Flame!" called out one of the shopkeepers, grinning widely at them. "Are you here to pick up the new explorer badges?"

"That's right!" Flame replied. The other Kecleon, coloured purple rather than green, made his way into the storage room then came out carrying a large sack with many little points poking at the sides of the bag. Julia flinched; carrying that was going to be unpleasant.

Just then, an apple rolled up to her paws and she picked it up, looking around to try to figure where it had come from.

"That's my apple!" called out a high-pitched voice. Two blue blobs came into focus as Marill and Azurill, two sprightly little brothers, as they came towards Julia.

"Good morning, guys!" Flame said cheerfully. "How are you?"

"We're doing great, thanks!" Marill squeaked. "Thanks for grabbing Azurill's apple. His paws are made of butter, I'm sure!"

A strange dizzying sensation came over Julia and she nearly stumbled. _What's...going on? I feel dizzy all of a sudden... _Another wave of dizziness washed over her and her vision suddenly went black_. Did I faint? _

Cutting through the darkness was a bright flash of light, then she heard a single, piercing note.

"Aaaiiiiiiiiieeeee!"

Then Treasure Town was back, Azurill in front of her with his paws out, expectantly waiting for her to give him his apple. Mystified, Julia handed it to him.

"Thanks, Julia!" he smiled, then took a big bite from it.

"Kecleon, can I please buy an apple for my mother?" Marill was asking the shopkeepers.

"Why, of course, dear little Marill!" chirped Kecleon. His brother once again went back into the storage and returned with a large apple.

"How about it's on us this time?" he suggested, to which Marill replied, "You're too kind! Thank you so much!" He took the apple then turned to face Azurill. "Come on, Azurill, let's go home now."

"Bye guys!" Azurill squeaked and hurriedly followed his brother away.

"Those kids are so cute!" Flame giggled. "Alright, let's get these badges back the Guild, Julia."

Julia frowned after them for a moment before asking, "Did you hear that scream just now?"

Cocking his head to the side, Flame gave Julia a funny look. "Scream? What scream? I didn't hear anything."

"I distinctly heard a scream. Azurill's, maybe."

"You just imagined it, Julia," Flame shrugged. "Azurill was here the whole time and he didn't scream at all."

Julia nodded, but felt a seed of doubt sprouting within her. She was certain she had heard something when she blacked out. Or maybe her partner was right and she was just imagining it. _What kind of sicko thinks about children's screams? _Julia wondered, then shuddered in mortification._ Hopefully not me!_

"You've brought the new badges? Ah, excellent work!"

When Julia and Flame finally lugged the sack down to the Guildmaster's door, Chatot had popped out to receive it with enthusiasm.

"May I ask what these badges do that our old badges don't?" Flame asked curiously.

"That's none of your business!" Chatot snapped, flapping his wings in a huff. "Well, you have received them faster than I expected, but it's too late in the day to go exploring for long. Take the rest of the day off, and take a new badge, both of you."

Flame pulled the bag open, and it was clear in an instant why these badges were 'better.' While their old badges were bronze in colour, these were _silver_. Of course that was an improvement Chatot approved. Julia put her paw in the bag and took a new badge, Flame doing the same. She handed hers to Flame to keep for safekeeping in his bag, which he defiantly had kept instead of the treasure bag they had been given when they first joined. Although the new bag was far superior, Flame's seemed to have some sentimental value to him.

As the day wore on, Julia found herself becoming increasingly bored, resorting to practicing reading the outlaw notice board. This board was on the other side of the job notice board and worked the same way, except this one had criminals and wanted outlaws instead of lost Pokémon. Flame had tried teaching Julia a few weeks ago to read the script that everything in this area of the world was written in and he practiced with her every night that they weren't too tired. He kept telling Julia that she was doing well, but she wasn't too sure of herself.

"Hey, Julia," Flame greeted as he walked up to her. "What'cha doing?"

"There's a lot of outlaws," Julia suddenly realized.

"Don't worry about it, Julia. Most of these guys are just crooks or bullies."

"I know, I know, but..." She began to feel curiousity tugging at her and continued, "Didn't Chatot say something about a disrupt in the flow of time causing more bad Pokémon to appear? How does that work, anyways?"

Flame paused, as if trying to remember. "Well, I'm not all too sure of it myself, but I think it has to do with some people thinking that this time problem is leading to the end of the world. I guess they stop caring about other Pokémon and just try to save themselves, or they go crazy. Something like that." He waved a paw dismissively, as if what he had just said would not cause Julia to gape at him in shock. "Anyways, want to go back to Treasure Town? We don't usually visit there, so maybe we can find something that we want to buy."

Julia was doubtful that they would be able to even afford anything useful. The Poké, currency of this region, that they earned from jobs went mostly to the Guild - Flame was still pissed at Chatot for that - and most of what they needed, such as food and the restorative Oran berries, could be found in mystery dungeons. But, figuring that they might meet some other exploration teams that had already graduated from Wigglytuff's Guild or some other guild and ask them if they knew anything about humans, Julia agreed.

Flame cheerfully led the way down to Treasure Town. To be absolutely truthful, he really only wanted to go to chat with Team Razor Wind, a powerful team made up of Zangoose, Scyther, and Sandslash. Perhaps they had discovered more treasure, or a new mystery dungeon. On their last exploration, they had brought back heaps of loot, including old relics and lots of gold. Zangoose kept bragging that they were the new Team Charm for weeks afterwards.

Soon, they were in town. To Flame's immense disappointment, Team Razor Wind wasn't anywhere to be found. With a sigh, he led Julia over to the Kecleon brothers' shop tent.

"Back so soon, you two?" asked the purple Kecleon, his eyes glinting in amusement.

"But of course!" chuckled the other. "It's only natural, since are personalities are so attractive!"

Flame rolled his eyes at the lame pun, then asked, "So, what good items do you have in stock today?"

"We have many!" both brothers claimed. "Just tell us what you'd like!"

"Julia?" Flame asked turning his head to his partner. She just shrugged and shook her head. What Flame found out about her very quickly was that she wasn't a very big talker. She seemed to be content with Flame making decisions and speaking in her place. Sure, once she got into a conversation, she chatted away, but she otherwise just listened quietly. Flame liked that about her - he enjoyed telling her stories and legends about himself and the world; respectively, of course. The best part was that she shared in his enthusiasm about folklore, possibly due to the fact that she still didn't know this world very well.

Flame tried to think of an item that might be useful to them to ask the Kecleon brothers about, but his thoughts were interrupted by the running in of Marill and Azurill.

"Mister Kecleon," Marill panted worriedly, "do you have any Gabite scales?"

The green Kecleon frowned and replied, "Sorry, Marill, but we don't stock those. Why do you need one?"

This time, Azurill spoke, his sweet little voice twisted with fear. "It's our mother, Misters Kecleon. She's getting worse. Marill says...Marill says..." His wide eyes filled with tears and he burst out, "He says she's gonna die!" Flame recoiled in horror. It was not a little-known fact that the mother of the brothers was often ill; that was why they always went out to Treasure Town on their own - to run her daily errands. By doing this, Marill and Azurill became quite self-dependant and capable of handling themselves. They still did need their mother, though, to take care of them. But could she really have gotten so sick that she was going to die?!

"Oh, Arceus..." the purple Kecleon murmured, his eyes softening. "We're so sorry, boys. There's nothing that we can do." Marill put a paw on Azurill's head as his brother wept, then turned to Flame.

"What about you?" he asked, looking hopeful. "Do you know where I could find a Gabite's scale?" It was as if a stone dropped in Flame's chest. He had no idea where to find a Gabite's scale. In fact, he had never even met a Gabite.

Crestfallen, he shook his head, closing his eyes. He didn't want to see the expression of defeat on the brothers' faces. Luckily, he didn't have to.

"I may be able to help, if you would allow me."

Flame raised his head to look at who spoke. A Drowzee stood behind the boys, his half-closed eyes kind. Marill's eyes widened and he cried out gratefully, "Really?! Oh, thank you, Drowzee!"

"I've met your mother before; she's a very sweet lady, and she loves you very much. I would not want you to be separated." He held out a paw to them and continued, "On the peak of Mount Bristle, there lives a Gabite. I'm certain I could persuade him to give you one of his scales."

"You'd...you'd really do all that for us?" sniffled Azurill, wiping away his tears.

"Of course. If you'd like, I'll take you with me to Mount Bristle to get the Gabite scale."

"Thank...thank you so much!" squeaked Azurill, taking Drowzee's paw and letting the taller Pokémon lead them away. As they walked away, Drowzee accidentally bumped into Julia's side.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry," Drowzee said to her, then continued on. Flame stared after him with adoration.

"What a great guy!" he exclaimed, beaming. "He's actually going out of his way to get a Gabite scale for Azurill's and Marill's mom!" Flame turned to Julia, then noticed something was off with her. She stumbled backwards, putting her paws against her head as if she had a headache. Her eyes closed tightly, then she looked like she would fall over.

"Julia!" Flame yelped, dashing forward to grab her before she fell. _She seems to be prone to getting dizzy,_ he noted. Before he could think of anything else, her eyes opened and she cried out in alarm, shocking Flame with a bolt of electricity.

"Hey! Why'd you - " began Flame, backing away, but Julia suddenly cried out, "I saw Drowzee! And he was threatening Azurill!"

Flame grabbed her shoulders and yelled, "Get a grip, Julia! Calm down!" He held her like that for another moment until her heavy breathing slowed down. Closing her eyes slightly, she tried again.

"Flame, you're not going to believe me, but...I saw Drowzee and Azurill standing, on the top of a mountain, I think, and Drowzee said that he was going to do bad things to Azurill if he didn't listen to him." She hung her head as Flame thought it over.

"Well, that is kind of weird," he pointed out cautiously. "Did you say you saw that?" Julia nodded, an odd look of terror in her eyes. "It sounds like you had a daydream, or something. I mean, you obviously didn't just see it with your eyes. And besides," he added hastily, not wanting to sound like he was accusing her of being crazy, "we just saw Drowzee offer to help the boys get a Gabite scale for their mom. The way he talked, he sounded really earnest." For a moment, Julia looked as if she wanted to protest, but she sighed.

"You're probably right, Flame," she agreed. "I have been hearing things lately, too. Maybe I just need more sleep. Oh, and..." Her face turned red with embarrassment. "Sorry about jolting you. I was just shocked."

"No, I was shocked!" Flame laughed. Julia seemed to brighten a little at his lousy pun. "Why don't we go back to the Guild for now? I don't really have much else to do here, anyways." His partner smiled and nodded, then led the way back. It seemed that she didn't need to be in Treasure Town, either.

By the time that they returned, the light of day was already beginning to fade. Flame noted with frustration that they would have had enough time to squeeze in another expedition had they not idled around and gone to Treasure Town. They were halfway down the first ladder when they heard a loud bang come from inside the upper underground floor. Flame scurried into the room to see what was going on, then noticed that all of the Pokémon in the room were staring at the outlaw notice board. The board was blank and a voice called out, "Updating in progress! Please hold!"

Of course, Flame knew what this was. Once or twice, he had seen this happen with the notice boards; when a new request came in, Dugtrio, Diglett's father and helper at the Guild, flipped the board from behind the wall to update it with whatever new request the Guild received. After a moment, the board flipped again, showing a new slip of paper. Some members of the Guild wandered over to read it, but nobody took it.

Flame, too, came forward to read it, squinting. Then he stepped back, clenching his paws into fists.

_I...I can't believe it! Julia...was right!_

The face drawn on the new request was none other than Drowzee, and he was charged with the kidnapping of Azurill.

"Flame, what's the matter?" Julia asked him worriedly, putting a paw on his shoulder. He hadn't even noticed that he had begun to tremble in rage. He glared up at the note.

"Look at that, Julia! On the request!" She frowned at it for a moment, then gasped.

"No way! Drowzee?!" Julia's cheek pouches crackled with furious electricity. "Then you know what we have to do?"

Flame nodded, growling, "We're going after him!" He snatched up the paper without hesitation and, gesturing to Julia, ran for the ladder.

"Hey hey hey, Flame, Julia!" cried out Corphish behind them. "It's too late in the day for you to take another mission! And he's all the way out in Mount Bristle! You two aren't experienced enough to take on such a dungeon alone!" But they were already too far away to hear him.

The moment they made it to the crossroads at the base of the stairs leading down from the Guild, Flame realized that Mount Bristle was indeed too far away. They would never make it in time to help Azurill, let alone by nightfall.

"You two look like you're in a rush!" Flame looked up and saw a pair of Pelippers circling above them lazily.

"Azurill has been kidnapped by Drowzee and taken all the way to Mount Bristle!" Flame called up to them.

"So we've heard," squawked the other Pelipper. "We were just headed over there ourselves to see if we couldn't do something to help. Need a lift?"

"Oh, yes please!" Julia cried out gratefully. The Pokémon flew down, and Julia quickly hopped on one of their backs. Flame was not so eager, though; he didn't feel safe off the ground, and being on the back of a water type Pokémon would do nothing to soothe his nerves. However, he thought of little Azurill, and, tightly shutting his eyes, also climbed on a Pelipper's back. Their lifts beat their wings powerfully and soon they were soaring through the air, wind harshly rushing past Flame's face.

When he finally allowed himself to open his eyes and look down, he couldn't help but be awed by the sight. Forests and mountains passed by below them, tiny as grains of sand on the beach. Flame glanced over at Julia to find that she also wore an expression of excitement.

"Wow! This is amazing!" she yelled over the hiss of the wind. "We're going so fast!"

"Hey, Julia," Flame began, raising his voice so that he could be heard, "for how long have you been seeing and hearing the future?" Julia looked so startled by the question that she loosened her grip on Pelipper and flew straight off. Before Flame could so much as squeak in surprise, Pelipper swooped down gracefully and caught her.

"Did you really think for even a moment that we'd let you fall?" chuckled her ride, his eyes twinkling as he rose back into the sky.

Blushing furiously, Julia muttered something that Flame couldn't hear. He tried to ask her for her answer to his question, but his own Pelipper began dropping in altitude, so he had to hang on tighter. They seemed to be zeroing in on a mountain peak, heading almost straight for it. Hang on, Azurill, Flame thought determinedly, we're almost there!

They were within fifty metres of the peak when a shrill scream cut through the air. The Pelippers were jarred so badly that they came to a near-instant halt, effectively tossing off both the riders.

"Wwwaaaaahhhhh!" Flame wailed as he tumbled through the air. A moment later, he plopped onto his Pelipper's back again, but he was winded. _That was close!_

A voice, distinctively Drowzee's, floated down the mountain and Flame began to hear it.

"Oh, don't be difficult, Azurill. If you don't do exactly as I ask, there will be truly awful consequences for you. I could do all sorts of nasty things to you..." Flame could take it no more, his rage finally exploding when they rose above the side of the mountain to the flat peak, where he could see Azurill, pinned down on the ground, and Drowzee leaning closely over him.

"Stop it right now!" Flame yelled, attracting Drowzee's attention. "Let Azurill go!"

Beside him, Julia leapt off Pelipper and onto the ground, and Flame quickly did the same, turning to face the criminal. The Pelippers beat their wings right above the two partners; somehow, their presence was reassuring.

Drowzee chuckled, watching Flame through amused half-open eyes. "Don't interfere, you pathetic little losers, or you'll be fucked next." Panic filled Flame as he realized what Drowzee was insinuating.

"You... What did you do to Azurill?!" screamed Flame, fire erupting on his back. "Get away from him, you monster!"

Wasting no time, Julia suddenly dashed forward and rammed Drowzee with an electrified Quick Attack. Drowzee was quick, too, though, and he grabbed her by the tail and flung her against a boulder. A red trickle of blood ran down her fur.

_No! Not Julia!_

"That's it, Drowzee! You've just crossed the line!" Flame curled into a ball and, coating himself in fire, rolled at the foe with supercharged speed. The instant he made contact, he was thrust back by a powerful Psychic attack. He slammed into the ground and skidded backwards, scrabbling to get a hold on the rock face. His hind legs were suddenly dangling over open air as he managed to grip a jut in the rock.

Powerful blasts of water could be heard, and he figured those were from the Pelippers, but he could do nothing but struggle to climb back up. Terror filled him and he realized that he was slipping, to fall off the edge and shatter like a twig against the rocks below. Flame shut his eyes tightly, attempting futilely to keep his pawhold, when he felt strong paws pulling him up. He opened his eyes and there was Julia lifting him forwards, panting from the effort. At last, he was up, and he fell gracelessly into Julia, knocking her over.

"Th-thank you," he squeaked, scrambling off her chest. He could feel his face becoming hotter, but this was no time to think about that. Azurill still needed rescuing.

The battle looked grim. Drowzee still wore the same placid expression, psychically throwing the Pelippers against the ground. At the same time, Azurill was pinned against the ground by psychic energy and he looked wildly at Julia and Flame, his eyes pleading. _We need to help him, but how? _Flame wondered_. Drowzee is too strong for us, and Julia is hurt - badly._ Her entire back was splattered in blood, much to Flame's concern.

"I know," Julia murmured to her partner. "You attack Drowzee from the front and I'll come at him from the back. That way, he'll have a harder time hitting us both."

"Right," Flame agreed, and they split up. The last remaining Pelipper finally collapsed on the ground, out of energy - not a very comforting sight. However, overpowering his misgivings with determination, Flame charged at Drowzee, hurling Embers one after another. As expected, Drowzee caught Flame in a Psychic attack, but before he could hurl him away again, an electric blast, followed by a strong tackle, hit him, sending Drowzee sprawling. He didn't get up.

"Did he...faint?" Flame inquired, confused. "But he seemed so relaxed!"

"I guess that was a facade," Julia shrugged. "Azurill...are you alright?" Flame suddenly remembered the little kid, and he was overcome with emotion.

"What did Drowzee do to you?" he whispered, terrified of the answer.

Azurill trembled, but replied in a firm voice, "He just brought me up here. I thought that we were going to get the Gabite scale, but then he knocked out my brother and forced me to come up here. He wanted me to pull out an item from that crack in the wall." Azurill pointed, and Flame saw that there was indeed a crack in the wall. "He couldn't fit in there himself because he was too big. Then when I said 'no,' he told me that he would do something bad to me if I wouldn't help him. Then you guys showed up." His eyes suddenly shone and he pounced at both of them, squishing them in a hug. "You saved me! Thank you!"

He then ran to each half-fainted Pelipper and hugged them each in turn. "And you guys also! Thank you all so much!"

"We were glad to help, kid," one of them said hoarsely, grinning. "How about we get you home now and turn in Drowzee to Officer Magnezone?" He looked back apologetically to Flame and Julia. "We'll come back for you right after, I promise." The two birds each grabbed one of Drowzee's arms and Azurill climbed on the back of the one who had spoken. They lifted off and in another moment, they were but a small speck in the distance.

By now, the sun had fully set and stars were beginning to appear. Flame closed his eyes, then turned to Julia.

"Your wound...it looks bad. Are you okay?" She blinked at him, frowning.

"It hurts, yeah. My back, that is. I was afraid that I'd broken it when I hit that rock." Her voice suddenly became worried. "And you? Did you get hurt at all?"

"No, I'm fine, thanks to you." Flame winced and continued, "Thanks for saving me. I was sure that I was a goner!"

Julia smiled faintly, then looked at the darker patch of sky, where the sliver of moon shone as brightly as it could. She sighed heavily then sat down on her rump, staring out at it. Her partner sat next to her silently.

"Are you thinking about your past again?" Flame asked softly, watching his paws.

"Yeah. I wonder...if I knew about this seeing the future thing. Maybe I knew how to use it, too, to help people, like today."

As much as Flame wanted to comfort Julia, he didn't know how. After all, he knew where he came from. _And...I don't want her to remember her past, _he thought guiltily._ If she goes home, I'll be left all alone, just like before._ He stole a glance at her. Julia sat close to him, her head hung slightly. He could just put his paw on her shoulder, or even hold her paw... Flame steeled himself for a moment, then at last second decided not to.

_Coward! _he chided himself_. Your fear of the Guild nearly stopped you from joining! Why can't I even muster up the courage to touch her?!_

Unexpectedly, Julia leaned against Flame, her eyes closing slightly. Flame blushed furiously, having no idea what to do. She sighed again, glancing up into his eyes with her bright blue ones.

"I'm sorry, Flame," she murmured. "I'm always such a pain in the ass about my past. I'm never thinking about how you might feel about that. It must get pretty annoying, huh?"

"N-no! Not at all!" Flame sputtered, only getting redder in the face. "You're always listening to me ramble, so this is no problem for me at all! Ah, wait! That is, I'm not saying that you ramble or anything - " _Stop screwing this up!_

A soft giggle came from Julia and she smiled at him. "Thank you. You're the best friend anyone could ask for." Flame's panic melted and he relaxed, resting his head against hers.

"You, too, Julia."

Flame and Julia had fallen asleep like that, pressed together, when the Pelippers returned for them. Blearily, they climbed onto their backs and let the Pokémon fly them slowly back to the Guild. Chatot had come with them to make sure they were all right and to scold them for running out so late and without warning, but upon laying eyes on them, sleeping so peacefully, he decided to save it for the morning. They reminded him of himself a bit, when he, too, had just started at a guild, similar to the one they went to now.

He flew behind the Pelippers and thanked them for all they had done once they reached the Guild. Faced with the problem of somehow getting them into their beds without waking them, if possible, he had the Pelippers deposit them near the entrance and puzzled for a while after they left until Wigglytuff came out. Without needing to let Chatot explain the situation, he easily picked them both up, one in each paw, and climbed down both ladders using only his feet. Chatot was, once again, left to marvel at the extent of his Guildmaster's capabilities.

The two put to bed at last, Wigglytuff bid Chatot an overly cheerful 'good-night' and retired to his room for the night. Chatot flew up both of the ladder tunnels to sit in his usual place on the top rung of the top ladder. He had found it necessary to guard the exit after Sneasel, a previous student at the Guild, kept trying to sneak out after hours; yet his sleeping arrangement now was immensely less comfortable than his previous one. _When one wants to do good for the Guild, one must give up personal comforts sometimes, _he convinced himself._ But if this is the best way, then why do I so often feel empty?_

Trying to ignore his doubts, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

**First of all, I've noticed that many people are just reading the most recent chapter without reading any of the previous ones first. That's not how you do it! You have to read the chapters in order! =x=**

**Anyways, enjoy the chapter! Thank you for following and/or liking the story, and as usual, reviews, suggestions, and critiques are a few of my favourite things, so please feel free to take a few seconds to write a review. ^w^**

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For a few moments, Julia couldn't speak. Who was this boy? Where did he come from? What did he want with her?

The boy in question was dressed oddly, clothed in a tight violet shirt and pants that flared out at the bottom. A cape fluttered in the breeze behind him and he wore a mask. On his shirt was a large black F.

"Well?" he persisted. "Will you join us?" Julia took a step back, frowning at him.

"What are you talking about? Who's 'us?'"

The corners of his mouth turned up and he gave a little bow.

"I am of Team Fury, and we have devoted our lives to making the world a better place. All of us have some powers of Pokémon, whether we were born with them or had them given to us. So, do you have an answer for me?"

Just as Julia opened her mouth to speak, Flame growled from beside her.

"Piss off! Julia's not going to join your team! So just leave her alone!"

The boy raised an eyebrow and told her, "Very, very rude. Shouldn't you let your Trainer make her own decisions? Or do you like ruling over her, _Flame_?" The last word came out in a sneer and Flame bristled.

"How do you know my name?" she hissed, pinning her ears back, but he wasn't finished speaking.

"I think it's selfish of you to think that Julia will always be with you. After all, you aren't even her Pokémon. The moment Noah finds you, you will have to return to him." Suddenly, something clicked in Julia's mind.

_Of course! This boy has psychic powers! That's how he teleported to us and how he can read Flame's mind!_

"Very perceptive," he added to Julia, smiling. "If you were to join us, I have no doubt that you will become a valuable asset. Being able to resist electric attacks so well just about marks you as a ground type; there are very few of those in Team Fury."

"A ground type?" Julia asked, then shook her head. "No way! I'm not a ground type!"

"What are you talking about?!" Flame burst out. "You guys aren't Pokémon, you're humans! Those are two very different species!"

The mysterious boy threw his head back in a laugh, then turned and began walking away. "You really believe that nonsense? Look at Darkrai, or Gallade. Humans and Pokémon are one and the same, but most humans are just normal types." He locked eyes with Julia and finished, "I will see you soon. Then, you can tell me what your final answer is." There was a bright flash and he vanished as quickly as he had appeared.

Flame growled menacingly at where he had been, "And don't you come back!" She looked back at Julia sullenly. "Let's go now." She led the way onwards, her paws clenched into fists._ What's gotten into her? _Julia wondered, calling out to a startled Sir Majestic Tail._ The guy didn't seem so bad, and maybe if I join Team Fury, I'll find out more about that vision that I had and what it means_.

Deciding that it was probably okay to let Fluffy out again, Julia pulled out her PokéBall and sent the Mareep out. Fluffy regarded her with a long look, then turned her head away ever so slightly. Sir Majestic Tail flashed a flirty grin at her, an act that seemed to justify, in her mind, shocking him as well._ This is ridiculous,_ Julia sighed, and mounted Sir Majestic Tail, getting a small static shock from his fur.

Not long after, they reached a large hill of rock with a large opening in its side. A nearby signpost read: "Union Cave ahead – watch out for Zubats!" Julia dismounted Sir Majestic Tail and led the way in. Flame stayed close behind her, her head kept down.

The cave was dark, but Sir Majestic Tail's fiery mane lit up the narrow passage. However, the stretch of tunnel didn't go for long enough to give Julia claustrophobia, and it opened up into a larger area with pools of water filling up holes in the ground. Underfoot, the hard-packed earth sank slightly with Julia's every step and she had to keep hopping around patches of wet mud. Flame kept her face in a scowl, but it was a weak expression; she trembled slightly and her eyes darted from side to side as she watched out for suspicious movement. Perhaps the wet cave was enough to dampen her foul mood.

"Oh, oh, oh!" lamented Sir Majestic Tail, high-stepping with a petrified expression. "My hooves – my lovely hooves – are being filthied! My lady Julia, was there no other route to Azalea town? Perhaps, a less muddy one?"

"Sorry," Julia sighed, "but this is the only one. Besides, the Union Cave isn't that long."

"But – but my hooves, my lady! You must understand! And curse this cream-coloured fur! If it gets stained, I'll have to take a bath! Really, with water and everything!" He shuddered delicately, lifting his head higher. "However, if this is the only way, I must endure, if not for my lady..."

"You think you have it rough, Fire-Butt?" Flame asked boldly, trying to stop quivering. "At least you have hooves – there's muck between my toes! But really, this cave gives me a weird feeling. We'd better be close to – "

At that moment, a swarm of Zubats swooped down from the ceiling, startled by her loud growls. Flame squeaked in alarm and, perhaps due to tripping over a stone or clot of dirt, fell face-first into the mud. Smothering a giggle, Julia quickly pulled her out. Flame looked down at her stomach fur and cried out in alarm.

"Shit! My fur! It's – oh, Arceus! I'm all muddy!" It was true – from her neck to her legs, her fur stuck out in dark clumps that dripped slowly to the ground.

Sir Majestic Tail gave her a smug look at her distress, which she, unfortunately, saw.

"You think this is funny?! My fur on my stomach is the same colour as yours! Now I look like a Furret or something!"

That comment prompted the Ponyta to burst into raucous laughter. Flame leered at him then picked up a pawful of mud. Fluffy, who had skirted away from the Zubats, now gasped in horror as she watched the mud fly in a graceful arc and splat against Sir Majestic Tail's flank.

"No! Nooo! Noooooo! My – my lovely coat!" He stomped the ground in fury, kicking more mud at Flame. "You filthy little Sneasel! Look what you've done!"

"Hang on a second!" Julia protested, but what had started could not be stopped. Flame hissed and hurled another pawful of mud. This time, she missed, and the lump hit Fluffy instead.

"Wah! Are you trying to kill me with that?!" she screeched. "Bitch, please!" Fluffy Thunderbolted the ground at Flame's paws, sending filth flying everywhere, including onto Julia.

"Ewww! Fluffy, really? That's overkill!" wailed Julia, stepping back from the mess. Sir Majestic Tail, who had also been hit by that splash of mud, turned on Fluffy now, too. Soon, a three-way mud war began between the Pokémon, blocking the path for the other, now inconvenienced Trainers, who tried to pass through.

Over an hour later, the four emerged from Union Cave, all equally caked in mud. Conveniently, Route 33 was in the middle of a downpour.

"Fuck you both," Flame snarled, glaring at Sir Majestic Tail and Fluffy as the dirt slid down her body in the rain. "Hey, Julia, I can tell that we're all gonna get along just fine."

"Shut up," Julia snapped. She never realized that it was possible to hate anything to do with the ground type this much. In the end, she had lost her temper and joined in on the fight while trying to move them closer to the exit. Each of them had been knocked into a pool of dirty water at least twice during the fight, doing nothing to calm their tempers.

Now, Fluffy frolicked about in the rain, looking infuriatingly pleased, while Flame continued to skulk and Sir Majestic Tail wailed in high-pitched whinnies.

"Oh, no! No, no, no, no! My tail! It's gone out! And my mane, too! Oh, the horror and irony of this situation! I've stepped from one disaster into another! Lady Julia, fetch me an umbrella or palm leaf or something of the sort to shelter me!" He paused, then corrected, "No, I could not send a lady out to do such a nasty task! Flame, get me a towel right this instant!"

"I'm a lady, too!" Flame roared at him, showing him her fists.

"Really? Well, you remind me of a little peasant boy. You certainly don't act like a lady, my sweet little dishcloth."

Fluffy took that opportunity to hit him again with a Thunderbolt. "Shut your overly massive trap before any more Blitzle-shit spews out," she suggested. Flame raised an eyebrow at Fluffy, who promptly sidled up to her. "I've decided that us ladies must stick together to defend ourselves from egotistical bastards."

"When did you all start using such harsh language?" Julia questioned, glaring. Even though they didn't speak the same language, it was easy to tell when something inappropriate was said.

"Oh, we were dirtied in the cave," Fluffy put, smiling pleasantly. Rolling her eyes, Julia motioned for her Pokémon to follow behind her as she walked along the path.

"W-wait! I have used no foul language of any sort!" protested Sir Majestic Tail, then, realizing that he was being left behind, dashed after them, crying out, "Waaaiiiit for meeee!"

The rain shower had ended by the time Julia and her entourage had climbed the hill up to Azalea town, a quaint little place where most houses still had thatched roofs. Near the entrance to the town was a sign that read "Slowpoke Well" and pointed down a wooden staircase with railings that descended in a square into a pit. _Who would have thought that a well would make it as an attraction? _wondered Julia._ What sane person goes into a muddy old well for any reason, anyways?_

A boy with purple hair wearing a bug-catcher's clothes knelt near the base of a tree, studying a Scatterbug with a magnifying glass. Julia had never seen a real Scatterbug before; they were native to Kalos. _So what's it doing here in Johto?_

Suddenly, the boy looked up and grinned at her.

"Hey! Glad you could make it to Azalea town! You still owe me a battle!"

Julia blinked at him in confusion for a moment, then remembered who he was. This was the same guy who saved her and Flame at the Ruins of Alph; didn't he say he was a Gym Leader?

"So, I didn't catch your name last time. Oh, yeah, and I'm Bugsy, in case you forgot," he added with a wink.

"That's Julia and I'm Flame," Flame instantly introduced, casting a sneaky grin at Julia. _That little – ! She's introduced us again! Nobody ever catches my name when she says it!_

Surprisingly, Bugsy nodded in understanding and repeated, "Julia and Flame, huh? Pleasure, misses. And who are these two?"

"Fluffy and Fire-Butt," Flame said, looking to each in turn. Sir Majestic Tail was aghast.

"Why, I never! That's Sir Majestic Tail to you, you soulless plastic bag!"

Bugsy laughed, his eyes lighting up. "Well, aren't you a fun bunch! You're lucky, Julia!"_ I wouldn't say 'lucky' – more like 'doomed.'_

"You all look pretty soaked through. Quite a downpour that was, eh? Wanna dry up with a quick battle at my Gym?" suggested Bugsy, raising a hopeful eyebrow.

"What – right now?" She had been hoping to get something to eat first, since all she had had on the journey to Azalea town was a couple of oran berries and she was incredibly thirsty.

"Of course! There's no time like the present!" He waved an arm and began walking into town. "Follow me to the Gym!" Julia supposed she had no choice but to follow, casting a don't-you-dare-get-into-a-fight-with-each-other glare at her Pokémon. They looked back at her innocently.

Bugsy's Gym looked exactly like Falkner's from the outside with the exception that the roof was olive green coloured instead of light blue. Inside, the two Gyms couldn't be more different. Trees grew out of the floor, which was really just hard-packed dirt, and bushes and vines covered much of the walls. From the ceiling spouted a massive honeycomb that had many Combees buzzing about it. In fact, there were bug type Pokémon everywhere – Venipedes scuttling about through the grasses; Weedles climbing up trees; Beautiflies and Vivillons, the latter of which with wings of unimaginable different patterns and colours, fluttering through the air. Julia was awed and slightly terrified at the same time. It was like being in the wild – chances were, some Spinarak was going to crawl up her leg when it thought she wasn't looking.

"Well? Like it?" questioned Bugsy, his eyes bright. "It's a real forest in here, isn't it? I wish I could say I came up with all this, but the Gym Leader before me did most of it. Still, I put in some bugs from Unova and Hoenn...and Kalos, too!" He pranced forwards gleefully, and held his arm out for a massive blue-winged Vivillon to land on it. "Aren't these Vivillons just stunning? I'll have to get Burgh to paint me with some of 'em."

Flame was watching a Caterpie munch on a leaf when she announced, "I'm hungry."_ Seems like I'm not the only one_, Julia thought, then decided that if Flame was also running on empty, it was a far better idea to eat something before they did anything else.

"I love your Gym – nice touch, the Vivillons – but we weren't very well-prepared when we set off from Violet city and I think it would be best for us to go eat before we battle," Julia explained sheepishly. "Would you mind?"

Bugsy grinned then waggled a finger. "You are a new Trainer! I'd figured! Well, if you're hungry, why don't I take you out?" He raised an eyebrow mischievously, adding, "You're bound to beat me with Flame and Sir Fancypants anyways, so it'll be my treat – as long as I owe you no prize money after our battle. Sound good?" Giggling, Julia smiled back at him.

"Alright, why not? I think I'll take up your offer."

Sir Majestic Tail cleared his throat impatiently.

"Oh, right, and my Ponyta's name is actually – "

" – Sir Fire-Butt," Flame interrupted, exchanging a sneaky look with Fluffy. Sir Majestic Tail looked thoroughly appalled.

"Hehe, Flame, you're quite the feisty thing, aren'tcha?" Bugsy said, beaming. "I think I quite like you! I will mind a bit less if you do battle my sweet little flutterbugs. And you – " He turned to Sir Majestic Tail. " - you seem quite proper! I like that!" Fluffy waited to be acknowledged, but upon discovering that that was not going to happen, she let loose a blast of electricity at Bugsy. The unsuspecting kid cried out when he was hit, then righted himself firmly.

"And, er, Fluffy, I think?" He coughed briefly. "You're totally powerful!" He gave her a thumbs-up. Fluffy seemed to be satisfied with this and pretended to lose interest and bounced off in pursuit of a Butterfree. Flame gave Bugsy an odd look, cocking her head sideways.

"So, can all humans withstand electric attacks?" she asked.

"Not at all, not at all!" Bugsy disagreed. "Only some can – those who are resistant to electric attacks, and that's not everyone. All people have a type; most are normal type, but there are lots of psychic types and fighting types. I myself am a grass type – that's why I'm such a big nature lover!"

"Ahem," Julia cut in, "while that's all very interesting, we're not any less starving. Could we...?"

Bugsy seemed to realize that he was beginning to ramble, and he quickly caught himself. "Of course! Let's go!" He dashed away towards the doors, then remembered Fluffy and Sir Majestic Tail. "You can leave your other Pokémon here – plenty of grass for them to graze on!"

Julia nodded, glancing at those two. Fluffy was happily occupied and Sir Majestic Tail was attempting to converse with a Galvantula, unsuccessfully. _They should be okay for a half hour or so_. Self-reassured, Julia motioned to Flame and followed Bugsy.

During the meal, Bugsy talked incessantly, often more off-topic than on, and laughing at his own puns. Julia listened and smiled as she ate, but Flame, sitting protectively next to her, was silent. He was too cheerful, too free-spirited, and too likeable. Flame refused to allow herself to like him. Something that she just couldn't put her paw on, buried deep in the darkest depths of her mind, marked him as a threat.

_But he's not a threat, _Flame argued with herself_. After we battle him tonight, we'll leave Azalea town tomorrow morning and never see him again. Besides, the guy saved us – if anything, he would be an asset, an ally, not a danger to Julia or myself._ Still, that little something nagged at her, like a thin red string tied around her finger, tugging insistently. There was something, something that should have been blatantly obvious, that she was forgetting. It really bothered her.

"...when Team Fury paid me a visit!"

Bugsy's voice cut into Flame's thoughts at the mention of Team Fury. Flame pinned her ears back and she narrowed her eyes, listening more intently.

"Team Fury?" Julia was asking, looking thoughtful. "Oh, that's right! There was a guy that came to us today and he said something about Team Fury. What about them?"

Glancing from side to side to make sure that nobody was listening in, Bugsy leaned in closer over the table, inches from Julia's face. Flame bristled in agitation and had to resist the urge to shove his face away with both paws.

"They say that Team Fury is a group made up of people with Pokémon-like powers. Nobody knows what they're doing or why, but one thing is for certain – there's lots of them, and they're still recruiting more people. Whatever they're planning, it's big." He had an oddly serious expression on his face, and he added in a barely audible whisper, "Just between you and me, I think they're up to no good, no matter what they say. I turned down their offer to join them. Did you?"

Julia blinked, leaning back in her chair. Bugsy pulled away, too; the action lifted a weight off Flame's chest. _Alright, Flame, cut it out! It's not like he was going to do anything to her!_ Flame grabbed a piece of no longer warm meat from her plate with her claws and chomped it viciously, not sure whether she was more upset with Bugsy or herself.

"How did you know that the guy asked me to join them?" Julia inquired, crossing her arms.

"The fact that they came to you at all is a dead giveaway," Bugsy replied, "but Flame seemed to think earlier that all humans can resist electric type attacks. Being that Fluffy seems to like shocking people, I can guess that you were electrocuted with no ill effects."

Julia grinned at him, giggling. "Are you a detective or something?"

Bugsy responded with another tricky eyebrow waggle. "You never know – maybe I am, maybe I'm not. Or maybe I'm just perceptive."

The satisfying thought of chucking the meat at the boy's face Flame quickly dismissed as a bad idea.

At that moment, Bugsy caught Flame's eye and she quickly turned her head away, cringing. She really didn't want to dislike him, yet she somehow felt that way. Bugsy gave her a small smile then closed his eyes.

"Sorry for stealing Julia from you, Flame," he chuckled. "You can have her back now. Julia..." He redirected his attention towards her, continuing, "I'll take my leave now. I've finished eating, anyways. See you guys at the Gym!" Standing up and tucking his chair away, Bugsy practically skipped out of the restaurant, tossing a grin over his shoulder at Julia.

Julia's eyebrows creased together in a frown and she asked Flame skeptically, "What was that about? What did he mean by 'stealing me away' from you?"

"Uh, well, I guess..." Flame had no words to respond to that. Bugsy was insinuating something, that was for sure. Did he think that Flame was...jealous? _That's preposterous! What reason do I have to be jealous of him? All he did was brag and flirt a little! _Slowly, a realization formed in Flame's mind._ I've gotten attached to Julia?! But we've only known each other for a few days! And besides, she's not my Trainer! When she returns me to Noah, I can't miss her, not even a little bit!_

"Never mind," Julia interrupted Flame's thoughts. "Bugsy already paid the bill, so let's go. Hey, you left, like, half your meal!" She reached over Flame and took the half-eaten piece of meat, then smiled at her. "Mind if I finish this for you?"

"Wah – ! That can't be sanitary!" Flame protested.

"Oh, stop worrying. We're friends, aren't we? And as you know, friends always finish each other's sandwiches!" Feeling as though she won that argument, Julia ate the rest of the meat. Flame silently vowed never to eat any raw meat ever again, for Julia's sake.

The two Trainers faced each other, each with equal expressions of determination. Their Pokémon surrounded them in battle-ready stances.

"Our battle...is now underway!" Bugsy called out, pumping his fist. "Let's do this! Whirlipede, you're up first!" A large purple Whirlipede rolled out in front of him, leering at Fluffy, Flame, and Sir Majestic Tail. They leered back at her.

"Okay, Flame, it's your time to shine!" Julia told her Pokémon. Flame sauntered out towards Whirlipede, keeping a safe distance. This was her first time seeing such a Pokémon, and she had very little idea about what it would do. She stalked it in a wide circle, aware of the flat ground beneath her paws and the grass tickling her underbelly, ears flattened. Despite preferring to walk exclusively on her hind paws, it was necessary to use all four in battle, as she had found.

The Whirlipede's attack came out of nowhere. Suddenly, she was rolling at incredible speed. Flame hardly had enough time to leap out of her path, fur standing on end and eyes wide._ I'll need to be faster than that to beat this thing!_

"Good, Flame! Keep evading it and use Ember!" Julia called to her from where she stood at the edge of the battlefield. Flame caught her eye and nodded, then skirted after Whirlipede, flames ignited. The Pokémon rebounded from her initial charge and turned sharply without losing speed to spin at Flame again. Narrowing her eyes, Flame faked quickly to the right before leaping to the other direction, Flamewheeling briefly to strike her side. The attack caught Whirlipede off-guard and she toppled over, skidding on the dirt and flipping onto her other side. Flame took that opportunity to pounce at her in another Flamewheel attack, striking harshly.

At this point, Whirlipede was too exhausted to even get up to roll again, and Flame knocked her out with a solid Scratch at her eye. Bugsy sighed then began walking towards them. Flame scurried backwards, watching him in confusion as he put his arms around Whirlipede and struggled to lift her up.

"Hey, Bugsy, what are you doing?" Flame inquired, lifting herself on her hind legs to see him better.

"None of the Pokémon in my Gym have PokéBalls," Bugsy explained, "so I can't just return her."

"Yeah, but what are you doing with her?" The Quilava followed him to the edge of the battle area, where he set Whirlipede down heavily. Within moments, a Poliwag hopped over, taking one look at Whirlipede before dousing her with a Water Gun. Flame squeaked as some of the water splashed her. I just was wet an hour ago! she mentally protested.

Whirlipede opened her eyes then stood herself up again. Bugsy patted her and smilingly told her, "Thanks, Whirlipede! You did well!" Taking that as a dismissal, Whirlipede blinked once at him in acknowledgement before rolling away.

Flame skirted back to her side of the arena, then glanced back at Julia, secretly hoping for some praise from the girl. When Julia caught her eye, her expression became strangely embarrassed and she quickly told Flame, "Uh, good job! Come back for now, Flame." Flame's ears lost some of their perk as she silently obeyed to be replaced on the field with Sir Majestic Tail. A Ninjask was sent out on Bugsy's end and the two Pokémon were suddenly locked in battle, dashing about the area and firing attacks at each other.

Looking away from the battle, Flame glanced up at her Trainer, who looked tense with her fists clenched and a drawn expression.

"What's going on, Julia? Are you upset or something?" Flame asked her, rising to her hind legs again to put a cautious paw on Julia's hand. The reaction that that got, Flame hardly could have expected. Julia practically jumped away, her eyes wide. It seemed like she stood there, away from Flame, for a long time. Flame stared at her, trying to hide her hurt. _What did I do? I just wanted to comfort her and she just... Wait, is she blushing?!_

The girl covered her mouth and looked away, her face visibly red. "Ah...I'm sorry, Flame," she apologized, taking a step towards Flame but still not coming too close. "I was just...thinking about what Bugsy said to you, earlier." _Still that?_

"So, what? What's the big deal?" Flame asked, casting a quick glance at the battlefield. Although Ninjask was much faster than Sir Majestic Tail, the attacks she dealt were far less damaging and effective.

"Uh, well, this is kind of a weird thing to ask, but...you don't have a crush on me, do you, Flame?"

"Wha – ?!" Flame was taken completely aback, shocked at even the very idea. _Me, a Pokémon, have a crush on my Trainer?! And...and we're both girls, too!_

"That's preposterous! Of course not!" Flame said in a panicked voice. "I like you as a temporary Trainer, but nothing more! Besides, that doesn't even work! How could you think something like that?!"

Julia cringed, turning even more red. "I'm sorry, it was just a thought. I was thinking that that might be what Bugsy thought, but you're right – that's stupid." She looked so deeply embarrassed that Flame wanted to comfort her somehow, tell her she didn't mean it, but on the other hand, she did mean it. Saying something like that would likely make things awkward between them now, and that was bad for both of them. For a person to say that, Flame figured, they'd have to have been hit in the head, hard.

The sound of Sir Majestic Tail's triumphant whinny broke up the awkwardness and Julia called out to him excitedly. He trotted over, his head held high.

"I say! That was a battle to remember!" He stomped the ground enthusiastically, sending a cloud of dirt up. "You both saw how I blasted that hideous little scrap of fabric into oblivion and eternal hell? And yet, I had such a wonderful challenge catching the thing! Nothing is faster than I now!" Fluffy rolled her eyes and jolted him for his arrogance. "Ah, point taken, Fluffy. No more bragging."

"You did well! Good job, Sir!" Julia grinned, patting his neck.

"Thank you, my dearest lady. I will surely take your kind words to heart," he replied, faking crying. Flame looked out over the playing field at Bugsy. His final Pokémon was a Venomoth, who flapped her wings powerfully. It seemed that all of Bugsy's Pokémon were girls, Flame noticed. In fact, even Bugsy looked feminine, with his slender frame and cute face. Had it not been for his distinctly male voice, Flame might have mistaken him for a girl. With humans, it was difficult to tell.

"Alright, then, Flame," Julia said, "you're up." That surprised Flame – wouldn't it be okay to send up Fluffy so that all of her Pokémon had a chance to battle? _Or does she just not want to talk to me?_ she wondered, and she felt crushed_. Maybe I was too rude to her._

But Flame wasn't one to disobey, so she stepped forward, defiantly deciding to remain standing. If she couldn't learn to battle on her hind legs, there was little point in staying up all the time. Venomoth flew towards her, venomous powder falling from her wings, then sped up. Flame ignited her flames and, dodging the powder, sent Embers flying at the Pokémon. Being nowhere near as fast as the Pokémon before her, Venomoth was hit and fell straight down, flopping onto her back. Flame walked over, peering down at her. _So is that it? That was a really easy battle._

Unexpectedly, Venomoth blasted the powder into Flame's face, sending her skidding backwards, clawing at her face. She couldn't breathe; the powder filled her lungs and choked her. Venomoth flew back up, mercilessly, striking her again and again.

_Somebody, help – !_ Flame wanted to run away, to curl into a little ball and vanish, to let Julia fight Venomoth. She would know what to do... _Except that she wouldn't, _she realized suddenly_. Maybe I'm the one thinking weird thoughts. Julia isn't a Pokémon, she doesn't know how to battle!_

She was suddenly alone, being beaten by the Venomoth and slowly fainting from the poison that was now taking effect within her. Despite knowing how stupid it was, Flame wanted nothing more in that moment than having Julia's comforting presence right by her side. With nothing left to do, she curled into a ball and waited for it to be over.


End file.
